Yappy Birthday, Naomi!

Naomi is 3! A super adorable, sweet, smart, sensitive, singing 3! Here's to embarking on an amazing year covering a full range of emotions and experiences, and probably with not quite so many tantrums because, after all, three is different than two.

Because Naomi won't tune into this blog for at least a few years yet, I can spill the secret that we didn't actually celebrate her birthday on her actual birthday. As a traditionalist, this hurt my soul--but anything for my child, right? We were simply too busy to celebrate on the 21st, but could dedicate the entirety of the 20th to her. And so we did!

Naomi's day started bright and early--but since she didn't remember it was her birthday, despite having had the special occasion talked up all week/month, she was content to talk in her crib for a while while Mommy and Daddy gained a little more consciousness, decorated, and wrapped a last-minute gift (oops!).

The birthday princess's first request was to open a present, so I let her dive into a new birthday dress, which she insisted on changing into immediately. Then we woke up her sisters. Elise switched into party mode the second she opened her eyes, while Kalina took just a bit longer; nevertheless, they were both soon at the table enjoying birthday cereal (Lucky Charms, which actually has less sugar and more nutrition than the kids believe) with the birthday girl herself.

Of course, it wasn't long before "the-party-is-here-because-I-am-here" Elise suggested opening another present--hers, in fact. The three-year-old agreed, and unwrapped the soft, pink penguin she has surreptitiously tucked under her arm and headed for the door with at three or more different gift shops over the past year. Elise got a kick out of the idea that she was rescuing the toddler from a life of crime, and Naomi got a kick out of the penguin. Naturally, Kalina's present came next--a realistic looking stuffed fawn, as Naomi has been asking for a deer for quite a while. (Famous Naomi Circle Time question: "What's your favorite deer?")

Fortunately, Naomi didn't seem to remember that what she actually asked for was a real bunny and a real lamb. Of course, a real dog would have been perfectly acceptable as well.

Then it was time to zip upstairs and get ready for the birthday event: a trip to Purina Farms! It turns out Naomi's tastes haven't changed much in a year, and although she's wary of dogs up close, she loves them in theory (and in stuffie) so we headed out to see more doggies, kitties and bunnies.

We met Grandpa there, and were soon happily going back and forth between petting a soft bunny and watching one baby piglet try to play with another that clearly didn't want to play. We played in the hayloft (and enthusiastic Elise got Naomi to crawl through the tunnels!) and saw a doggie obstacle course show before calling it a morning.

Even birthday girls need a nap, so while Naomi took hers, I baked and Matt canned salsa. Naomi had requested a pink wedding cake, possibly inspired by some wedding cakes we saw at a local bakery. How could I possibly measure up, especially when my uneven version cracked, shifted and simply didn't look very fancy. Fortunately, a little colored sugar and copious amounts of frosting can cure almost any cake, and Naomi's eyes brightened at her beautiful pink wedding cake. Either that, or she just likes frosting.

After a big morning, Naomi and her big sisters opened more presents, including new Play-Doh and Wiki Sticks from Grandpa Les and Grandma. Fortunately, these entertained them well for quite a while as I put the finishing touches on the cake and Matt continued to make some (pretty amazing) salsa.

Grandpa arrived, and the girls continued to enjoy new birthday toys (and Grandpa) while dinner was prepped. What do you cook for a birthday girl who doesn't really like anything? Tacos, of course! And they were accepted.

During dinner, Naomi eyed the big present. It was big. It was rectangular. What could it be? We asked. "A dog," Naomi predicted.

Naomi loved her candles, loved having us sing to her and loved her cake. After thoroughly licking the frosting off her slice and receiving a second, which had its frosting similarly removed, it was time for the rest of the presents!

We couldn't resist the big package any longer. It was, in fact, a big dog! The one Naomi had wanted to cuddle with in Ikea, and Matt managed to sneak out of the store almost as if he were a toddler with a fuzzy pink penguin under the arm. Except he paid for it, of course. Naomi was delighted, although she found it hard to tuck under her arm at first. She decided that it was a baby puppy (baby Clifford, perhaps, without all the red?), and its name was Lolly.

All the rest of the gifts were opened in the context of the big puppy, and included a lot of smaller puppies as well. Naomi put them all carefully to sleep before she would consent to a bedtime story.

We love the giant doggie!

Happy birthday, sweet girl!

At three, Naomi remains sensitive and sweet, as she has been since her baby days. She shows empathy and thoughtfulness ("Mommy, were you lonely upstairs all by yourself?" and, holding me tight, "Mommy, I can keep you safe if Elise jumps out and says boo!"). She makes sure Biscuit always has enough ice cream and birthday cake (Biscuit has a birthday nearly every day). And although she mistrusts babies, men and anyone she doesn't know, she warms up to them once they become more familiar.

Naomi alternately adores her sisters and sees them as rivals (which they are). But especially one-on-one, and occasionally all three together, she's increasingly able to play nicely. She loves playing "circle time" and doing crafts with Elise, and reading stories and taking care of stuffies with Kalina.

Naomi added lettuce and bell peppers to her palate this year, albeit removing all but a couple bites of watermelon and pasta sauce, and occasionally mistrusting plums, mangoes, peaches and apples with spots. She is very gentle with small animals, she loves to dance to "beautiful" music ("Mommy, will you play the beautiful music?") and teach others to dance to beautiful music ("Mommy, do this") and adores stories and jokes (especially Grandpa's joke for the day). Sometimes she sings and makes up cute little songs.

My sensitive girl gets nervous about crowds, loud environments and new people and places, but manages to navigate them with some settling in and long wind-down/processing afterward, which usually involves fixing food for various stuffies.

Naomi loves notebooks to
write in and tear pages out of.

Naomi plays the piano quite well for a 3-year-old (less banging, more actual fingering) and has been blossoming with her crafting as well. She loves cutting things, taping thing, gluing things and hole-punching. She also enjoys notebooks that she can write in, and regularly writes her alphabet (it looks like lines, but we'll get there!), grocery lists and notes to her friends and family (especially 2-year-old Genevieve). Naomi usually enjoys drawing and coloring pictures for people, but often nowadays prefers for me to draw and color while she watches. Her pencil grip continues to be amazing, as are her counting skills. She's working on letter and number recognition, and can point out some of the letters (including mommies and babies) in her name.

While puppies, kitties and other soft animals continue to be Naomi's favorites, she's also starting to venture into the princess realm. Occasionally she turns in to princess Sofia, and she enjoys dressing up. If it were up to her, she would wear a dress every day, and a fancy one at that. Once she rejected brown shorts on the grounds that "but they're not pretty!"

Dissecting her cake. The
outside is the tastiest, but
at least the inside is pretty!

Naomi's still very into mommies and babies, and sometimes I even get instant feedback on my parenting as Naomi acts out scenes between mommies and babies with her animals. "Mommy, the puppies do not want to go to bed, they say, 'We don't want to go to bed!' but Biscuit makes them go to bed." Complete with whiny voice for the puppies and strict voice for Biscuit. Do I really sound like that?

The 3-year-old also seems to enjoy responsibility and housework. She'll vacuum alongside me with her popper vacuum (now that she's not as scared of the vacuum anymore), clean the bathroom with me and generally take care around the house. As long as it's her idea.

She enjoys being outside, swinging on her tummy, doing puzzles, making things with blocks and of course, reading stories. She's a joy to be around, and we can't wait to see what age 3 brings!

We enjoyed a mini playdate
animal party with a few
friends. Not pictured:
the giant balloon!

Grandpa reads a beloved new
Charlie the Ranch Dog
book for Naomi's birthday.

Me and my girl! And a doggie
statue.

Naomi also likes making
necklaces out of pipe cleaners
and Cheerios. She's wearing
one in this picture.

The 9-Day Trip

The train ride at Como Zoo!

When we told the girls we were going to be taking a 9-day vacation, they were duly impressed. Nine whole days! And who even knows how many nights? Wow!

But possibly the sheer magnitude of such an idea put them on edge as well, such that as I was scrambling around a hot and humid house on a Friday morning in late July trying to fit virtually all of our belongings into a few suitcases, everyone else frequently let me know that they were "scared." And while most of us learned that there was nothing to be afraid of, Naomi, who isn't really into new people and places, didn't quite believe me.

Poor Naomi. This was possibly not her favorite trip as a whole, although in the end she found lots to like--as did the rest of us--and whenever she tells friends back here about the trip, she makes sure to mention that she "wasn't scared on the trip!" (Not true!) Here's the play-by-play.

Our friends caught on to Rainbow
Looming right away!

We left at naptime on Friday, which only meant we were traveling with a slightly fussy Naomi rather than a sleeping one. No biggie--on Day 1 of the trip, anyone who's not scared is in a pretty good mood. The trip was easy and after a few snacks, stops and mad libs, we cruised into our friends' place right after suppertime.

Elise and Kalina had recently discovered the joys of rainbow looming (making bracelets out of thousands of tiny rubber bands) and we'd surprised them with thousands of new bands to share with their friends during the trip. Elise the Negotiator wondered when, exactly, we could open the bands. NOT IN THE CAR!! We agreed on Saturday morning unless we happened to arrive early enough to use them on Friday evening. And we did! This was a big deal to Elise, as we heard every hour or so, so immediately upon arrival she and Kalina got right down to business helping their friends, Isaac and Lilly, make their own bracelets. Naomi, who'd heard big things about 4-year-old Cora, quickly paired off as well.

Elise explores Pella with her
doppelganger. You can also see Naomi
trying to do the same with Cora, who is
often, but not always, on board with the
idea.

Everything was jolly until bedtime. Despite lots of reassurance from her family, Naomi was not looking forward to sleeping in a strange house in her "new" bunny sleeping bag. Kalina helped by reading stories and Elise "helped" by making jokes, but it's probably safe to say she dreaded it until she fell asleep. While sitting in the dark beside her, I mentally made a note that we might end up cramming her into a pack-and-play at Grandma's house. Only eight nights to go.

In the bright light of morning, all became sunny again. Naomi ate all of two bites of breakfast, and the older kids spread their bands across the living room, working as though in a sweatshop. Fun! Aside from making bracelets, day 2 of vacation was spent playing outside, picking bowls full of blue (and pink!) blueberries, digging plastic toys out of ice for fun, and exploring Pella. We stopped at a yummy bakery, braved the heat (the heat almost won) and saw a windmill. Naomi actually napped and bedtime went a tiny bit better.

Aunt Debbie's dollhouse
looks as nice as her real
house now!

Uncle David and Aunt
Debbie's new house!

Day 3 we spent in Des Moines. We started at a friend's house, where the two-year-old seemed to like new people even less than Naomi does (but was still pretty adorable). The girls headed to a park with Daddy while I had lunch with my old friend. Then we ventured to Uncle David and Aunt Debbie's new house, where all the girls helped her set up her dollhouse, and Kalina and Elise re-set it up after sweetly tolerating lots of help from their little sister. We played some games, walked around their lake and found the solitary goose, filled bags with pretty rocks (a theme of the trip) and ate a delicious dinner, complete with dessert. Back in Pella, Naomi seemed to be getting used to her sleeping bag.

We ate at Hickory Park
and Cy was kind enough
to welcome us and let
us climb on him.

In the morning, Matt and I babysat our friends' kids while packing up--no big hardship considering our kids played better with friends than without them. Then we left some rainbow loops and were on our way.

Our next major stop would be Grandpa and Grandma's house in the Twin Cities, but we had a couple stops to make along the way. First, we ate at Hickory Park in Ames, an old favorite of ours from the college days. The girls were delighted to find that it's pretty much impossible to eat there without getting ice cream. Yum. Not that Naomi ate much of anything except for ice cream (another theme of the trip).

Then we visited Aunt Jeanie, who sends us beautiful hand-made cards every year for our birthdays. Jeanie was kind enough to not only give us a tour of her craft room, but to let each girl make their own creation. Naomi stamped whales and cats, Elise made a sweet card (that she secretly planned to send to Aunt Jeanie as a thank-you note for helping her make the card) and Kalina opted for a bookmark as she is, of course, always running out of bookmarks. In her own signature style, she found a new way to use parts of stamps to get the image she wanted.

Everybody got to make
something with Aunt Jeanie!

Since Aunt Jeanie lives on a farm, we of course had to explore the yard, with its towering pines and the almost-as-towering field of corn, as well as the garden. It was hard to leave this beautiful place, but a taco dinner was awaiting us so we piled into the car for our last leg of our journey north.

Day 4 ended at Grandpa and Grandma's house, where Naomi was a little more comfortable in her sleeping bag (thanks in part to stories from Kalina), but settling down still didn't happen until late. Oh well--it's vacation, right?

Elise on the Frog Hopper,
just before the slight drop
and the thumbs down. She's
in the very middle.

Day 5 was an extra-special one: Daddy's birthday! And a trip to Como Zoo, where we rode the carnival rides since we hadn't really done that before. After a successful train ride, Elise tried the slightly more adventurous Frog Hopper. Fortunately, a thumbs-down sign stops the ride, so Elise was soon off--but she tried! Although she's not planning to ride it again anytime soon, she did enjoy being up high and seeing the other rides, and I believe she also enjoys telling the story (with a dire warning to her sisters to never ride on the Frog Hopper).

The teacups! Daddy got the honors
of riding along, even though Mommy
totally would have if there hadn't been
a vertigo risk!

We then rode the pony carts and after a long wait, the teacups, which Kalina had been yearning after for a while. Naomi, to my slight surprise, tried everything her big sisters did (except the Frog Hopper, of course), possibly due to the fact that she actually has big sisters to ride with. We tried cars and the teacups again, refreshed with a snack and then, to end on a very high note, panned for fossils, minerals and gems! All three girls were over the moon with their own little bag of pretty rocks (Elise even more so than the others, because she's Elise). Naomi napped away the afternoon at home while her big sisters sorted, sifted, gushed over and identified their rocks, and Daddy and Grandpa golfed.

They also caught a toad and played with the decorative rocks around the patio, which they discovered could be written on by other rocks and turned into fairy furniture and food. And then we ate cake and ice cream with Daddy!

Doesn't everyone look
lovely at Pinocchio?

The next morning, all the girls had a very important date to see Pinocchio in the children's theater. We left plenty early and were rewarded with the chance to see some statues at the art museum next door and use the bathroom before, except for the two youngest, of course. After rather precariously determining who would sit by Grandma for which part of the performance (after all, we were negotiating with a two-year-old), we settled in and thoroughly enjoyed the show. Even Naomi remained spellbound during the entire 1 1/2-hour production!

Then we all enjoyed lunch at a bakery, enjoying some slightly new flavors and our free cookie for dessert. Back at home, everybody except the kids was tired and ready for a nap, so Kalina and Elise played with Naomi while she pretended to attempt to nap, while the grownups checked out. Later we explored more outside, including the lake just around the corner from the house.

On Day 7, we decided the girls needed some low-key, yet out-of-the-house fun (lest something or someone get broken) and checked out a really neat nearby playground. Kalina and Elise enjoyed exploring and trying out some different playground toys while Naomi let the grownups take turns being pulled around by the hand to do the same.

Fun with second cousins!

Later, we headed to Aunt Rita's house for a mini family reunion where we met two new girl second cousins (once removed?) right about Kalina's and Elise's age and their very happy baby brother. The big girls thoroughly enjoyed their new playmates and played outside all the beautiful evening. Naomi, however, wanted nothing much to do with anyone new, and instead sequestered Grandma in the small (but magical) upstairs playroom with her. The toddler did come out of her shell a bit to eat dinner (chips and fruit on her plate--a pretty typical meal for her while we traveled) and especially for ice cream.

Panning for cool rocks is very
serious business.

The next day was our last full day at Grandma and Grandpa's. And it happened to be Grandpa's birthday! If you asked Naomi, anyway--she thought it hilarious to wish Grandpa a happy birthday whenever she saw him. Unfortunately, Grandpa will have to wait until December for the real thing.

Matt took some amazing
pictures of the hawk. We were
not quite this close, but close
enough to get this shot.

We surprised ourselves in the morning with a walk around the lake, including a stop at the playground halfway. If we had known we'd end up out for two hours in partial sun right around lunchtime we would have packed accordingly. As it was, we thoroughly enjoyed the first 3/4 of the walk! We even spotted a hawk eating its prey up in a tree--perfectly visible and perfectly content to let us observe it. We could almost hear it crunching, and we were all too fascinated to be grossed out.

Later that day, Elise caught a tree frog and we explored more of the neighborhood. Matt caught a small fish followed very closely by a leopard frog that Kalina spotted. ("Get the fish off the hook and catch this frog!") Grandpa Les removed a few more toes (he always puts them back on, though!) and we examined all the rocks again.

Doesn't this just look like the coziest
place to sleep?

And then it was our last night! Sometime during the trip, Grandma read Naomi a story called My Favorite Things. The end of the story asks the question, "What's your favorite thing?" Naomi's answer? "Sleeping at Grandpa and Grandma's house."And so it was that we all had a good trip--even Naomi!

Elise taught Grandpa how to
Rainbow Loom!

Grandma taught Elise how to knit!

Kalina is 8 and June was great

Kalina decorated her own
birthday cake by her request.
We enjoyed vanilla cake,
vanilla icing and
sliced strawberries. Yum!

Backstage ballerinas,
beautiful inside and out.

There are dozens of things I could write about the month of June. We began with a beautiful ballet and performing arts recital, which Elise was proud of because she didn't mess up in a place she often messes up and Kalina was delighted with because she enjoyed being a Lady Licorice villain. They both performed very well, Elise earnestly doing her very best to give the audience a good show (and succeeding!) and Kalina adeptly and gracefully leading her class around the stage.






And then Grandma and Grandpa came for a visit! We did several crafts we're still talking about, and Kalina figured out swimming under water in the hotel pool. They both took their first pony rides and fed birds at Grant's Farm in a very magical morning. The pony rides were "bumpy" and lots of fun--neither Kalina nor Elise were the least bit scared, although Naomi, who was expecting smaller ponies, opted out.

The 100+ parakeets in a feeding cage were enchanting. The bird Kalina singled out and bonded with hopped onto her arm, a couple more made it to Grandma's hat and shoulder, and one walked onto my arm. Then, with only a few minutes of convincing, bribing and baiting, another finally hopped onto eager Elise's arm. Naomi was vehemently opposed to letting any birds come close to her, so we all got our wish. Perfect!

We also managed to catch plenty of nice fish with Grandpa, including Elise's first catfish, of which she was super proud, and a small collection of minnows and a tadpole.

But of course, June wouldn't be June without a celebration of our oldest girl's birthday!

A few weeks ago I asked Kalina if she'd like to do anything special for her birthday. She thought for only a moment before her awed, enthusiastic voice replied, "Get a library card!" Later, she realized she also wanted to hold a birthday celebration for her mice. I knew we could manage these, and probably a few more surprises as well.

Kalina is a girl that exudes "It's my birthday!" enchantment, regardless of the fact that there are presents and cake and other festivities. She woke up glowing, and glowed all day long, whether brushing her teeth or unwrapping a new pair of roller skates.

This particular morning was a busy one: after a bowl or two of birthday cereal (Lucky Charms, in this case), and a present from Naomi (a sweet stuffed lamb--Naomi's own idea that was very well received by her big sister, who good-naturedly agreed to the name Naomi suggested) it was time to head out to VBS. But wait! The heavy Birthday Girl button didn't work very well on Kalina's light shirt. We needed one more present, which conveniently happened to be a pretty birthday dress. Birthday Girl button in place (which has earned its weight in extra birthday greetings from friends and strangers alike), we headed out the door. Kalina was thrilled that all of VBS sang happy birthday to her at snacktime.

Kalina's mice celebrate their
"birthday," too!

Lunch was also to be special: Kalina and I were to go out on a birthday lunch date, complete with shopping afterward. After all, isn't it sometimes fun to pick out your own birthday present? Kalina thought so! We thoroughly enjoyed our meal and wandering around Petco for an hour oohing and aahhing over everything from bird treat holders, to a friendly cat and a cat with a funny haircut, to a new kind of rodent wheel. But what held Kalina's attention the most was a new mouse cage. After examining several, calling Daddy for permission and even researching in-store via smartphone, Kalina chose a wire cage with connectors that would allow her to hook up her tubes into all kinds of neat configurations. Happy birthday Kalina, and happy birthday Cupcake and Brownie! We lugged the cage to the van, shared a free cookie from the people at Jason's Deli (thank you, birthday button) and headed for the library where a nice librarian who recognized my name (thanks to the hundreds of books I request every year *hiding my head in shame*) and helped Kalina sign up for her very own library card.

Back at home, Grandpa, who had been watching Elise and Naomi, was recruited to assemble the cage, with plenty of help from Kalina, of course. Soon, Brownie and Cupcake were celebrating their birthday with a brand-new home so extensive they could get lost in it! Sweet!

We went out to Kalina's new favorite pizza place for supper, then returned home for cake and presents. Kalina loves to savor her moments, which meant that each card and gift was lovingly unwrapped, explored/read and only reluctantly set down so we could open another. And even so, bedtime was quite late! But it was a pleasure to see Kalina so thoroughly enjoy all of her gifts and feel so loved to be thought of by all of her favorite people.

When I asked Kalina if she wanted to do anything with her friends for her birthday, Kalina said she'd like to do an all-day, drop-off birthday playdate. We compromised on a six-hour drop-off playdate, with five friends because she really has five very lovely friends who get along well together, and pizza for lunch instead of the traditional Russian dish she would've rather had (but probably would've seemed a bit strange to her friends).

Kalina's rainy playdate party with
friends! (No faces and in the distance
for online privacy reasons.)  Did you
notice that Kalina kindly distributed
the family umbrellas among her
friends, wearing only a raincoat
herself??

The day was rainy, but that didn't stop the girls' fun. After initially following Kalina around from mice, to piano, to room, to basement, and back again, they settled into playing nicely together. I kept Naomi happy, pizza was delivered and nobody was in tears. I felt almost peaceful.

And then we started the craft. I knew making hand-sewn mice would be a challenge, but it was the only craft idea I could possibly come up with that Kalina was excited about. (Mental note: next time just pick something myself and be confident she'll love it--because she will.) As it turned out, although enthusiasm was high, sewing skills were all over the map. Fortunately, I was the only one losing patience with endless weird knots and short ends, and each girl managed to complete a mouse. They soon headed off to the Mousetrap board to feed them cheese and attempt to trap them. Fun!

Thank goodness another mom arrived to visit and help, and she helped me put cupcakes on the table for the girls to decorate, and generally manage the chaos that now ensued. But in truth, the "chaos" was sweet, simple, nice chaos and except for the occasional two-year-old tantrum, easily managed. The playdate ended up lots of fun, for me as well as for the girls. Except possibly those endless weird knots... (How did you do that?!? And why?!?)

Kalina treated us all to a
homemade fairy punch one
day.

It's been a big year for Kalina. As a seven-year-old, she gained lots of confidence and ability in activities she's been pursuing (whether of her own accord or her mother's) for years. Kalina learned the basics of a couple new instruments, most of the cursive alphabet, the sign language finger alphabet, how to knit, how to bike without training wheels and how to swim underwater. She was the best ballerina in her class after a two-year gap in lessons (really), took off with piano and enthusiastically dug into Spanish, in addition to making great strides in her other school work. In the kitchen she can chop (carefully), make scrambled eggs and cookies and mostly follow a recipe. She knows her globe very well, has lots of Bible verses memorized and can talk intelligently about many subjects in science. She's been interested in how things work lately and worked her way through a book about inventions. The girl can remember a tune she's only heard a couple times, long ago, and pick it out on the piano, then add simple accompaniment.

Kalina is very gently working on training her mice and continues to pursue meaningful relationships with every animal she sees. She currently wants to be a pet shop owner specializing in mice, rental penguins and axolotls. And yes, she still adores Lisa (formerly known as Lamby), sleeps with her, brings her places, dresses her up and occasionally talks to her.

Kalina plays a duet with
Uncle Tom

Kalina loves stories of when she was little, and has a heart for those who may be a bit helpless themselves (little children and, of course, animals). She's sensitive, dreamy, sweet, smart, funny, trusting and full of beauty. While Kalina may never be on time of her own accord, she puts her whole heart into whatever she's doing, and it truly shows. She likes to organize things and beautify the table, for instance, and has even been known to straighten her own drawers and nightstand without being asked, but would much rather be on "toddler duty" than clear the table, sweep the floor and other such proletarian tasks (although vacuuming is okay).

She dances instead of walking at times (especially when we're in a hurry), excitedly captures all manner of bugs and worms in her hands, and even once, bravely killed a bee that she believed was going to sting her friend. (Yet if you ask her to go down to the basement alone she'll immediately recruit a sister to accompany her--thank goodness she has two.)

Naomi loves to match with
Biscuit!

The girl spends much of her spare time reading everything from Peter Pan (unabridged) to other less-classic fairy books, and has branched out to other memorable characters such as Ramona Quimby. Some of her very favorite books were written 100 years ago by author/conservationist Thornton Burgess, about the lives of little animals in the woods.

Yes, Kalina's head is often in the clouds, but she's responsible and kind enough to come back to earth on occasion. And we're all very glad she does, because we're so thrilled to have spent eight lovely years with our dear, sweet Kalina!





And now just a few pictures from the Fourth of July:

It's nice to know that the Hanks
fireworks tradition will be passed
down...sort of...

Over the Fourth of July, Elise taught
Aunt Debbie how to finger knit!

 

The baby animal stage

Naomi, following directly
after her big sister's footsteps,
holds a "poetry" reading. She
can actually recite significant
chunks of The Poky Little
Puppy and several other not-
easy stories. Yes, the book is
upside-down.

Naomi is getting older, but is she getting bigger? The fact that my tiny girl is still sporting last-year's styles aside, the jury is out, namely because it's hard to set an age for the child. The fact of the matter is, Naomi is solidly in the baby-animal phase of development, which means that, a chronic newborn, any given day she's assuming the identity of a baby polar bear, a baby fish, a baby penguin, a baby meow-meow and much more, and expecting me to know how to parent each of these. Fortunately, having done the baby-animal phase before, I'm totally onto this game. But then again, so is Naomi.

It started with woof-woofs. Naomi's major puppy "phase" (it's only a phase if they ever come out of it, right?) induced her to want to become a puppy, and thanks to her imagination and my apparent adeptness at playing the part of a mommy puppy, she was able to. Her puppy licks at times might be a little too real, but they're no less sweet.

Then she branched into kittens, penguins and sea turtles and shortly after could assume the toddlerish identity of any animal she had ever heard of, although she occasionally mixed up giraffes and zebras (understandable). It's interesting to note that Elise followed a similar pattern: puppies and kittens, penguins and then clownfish, which lasted for about a year.

Naomi can be fairly convincing, if only out of persistence. And I can tell that not only is she learning about important familial relationships (mommy-baby, baby-mommy, sisters-baby, Grandpa-baby, and occasionally even Daddy-baby), but also about the animals themselves.

See, she's almost as proud as
her mommy! She could've
continued all night, fueled
by the enthusiastic cheers
of her family.

The sounds: From miniature to emphatic, Naomi roars, squeaks, woofs, quacks, honks and ribbits to express her emotion as a baby animal. Sometimes she feels teeny-tiny, a mere newborn who can make only a tiny squeak. Sometimes she's a starving polar bear cub that can roar with a fierceness that makes the mommy polar bear forget about the real dinner she was making and jump into action finding some pretend morsel for her cub. Often she's a playful puppy or kitten, or a baby bird calling for its mommy bird. Other times she feels ignored as I'm talking to her sisters, and feels as though increasing her volume will ensure her survival, or at least that of her ego. Roar. Roar. ROAR!!! Silent animals stymie her for a while, but she always finds a way around their muteness. Baby bunnies vocalize their hops, for instance. Baby spiders spin their webs (literally, spin around the room in circles while saying "spin"). Etc. And she's not above making up a sound for the truly soundless, activity-less animals. The baby sloth, for instance, says something like "glurp." Did you not know that?

The sights: Not only does Naomi sound like an animal baby, she also mimics their movements and activities. She hops just like a frog--back legs in between front ones, even though this position looks fairly uncomfortable. She'll walk on all fours, or crawl; she'll flap her wings or curl up into a little ball like a newborn fawn. As a bird, she appreciates a nest as a prop, for added realism. Today she climbed onto a mounded-up brown blanket and declared herself a baby muskrat. Does she know that muskrats live in brown mounds? She really might.

Naomi likes to help me fold
washcloths. She does a
fantastic job, too, and has
branched out to other chores
as well. I think she's the only
person in the family who
likes housework.

The tastes: Naomi seems to instinctively know that all baby animals are after food, and she'll happily-yet-agitatedly baa, chirp, chatter or roar until I grab a handful of air, tell her it's grass or a bug, and put it in front of her mouth. Then she'll sweetly gulp it up, or slurp it if we're being especially silly ("Naomi, you don't slurp grass!" "Yes I do!"). If she's a puppy, she knows to ask for a bone. For unfamiliar animals, she'll cheerfully clarify before asking to be fed (What does a porcupine eat?). Sometimes the answer is, unhelpfully, "porcupine food," which she readily accepts even if she doesn't learn anything by it.

The life cycle: Never mind the fact that Naomi may or may not quite understand that baby frogs are actually tadpoles (and she takes on the identity of a baby frog fairly frequently). She's clearly internalized the fact that birds hatch from eggs and in fact, often takes on the identity of a baby bird that hasn't hatched yet. In this case she walks around in a slightly constricted manner until she proudly announces, "I hatched!" and we all congratulate her as though it actually is her birthday. Then I proactively grab her a handful of air-worms to ward off newborn hunger. I know how it works. Shortly thereafter, she learns to fly, a real-world feat Elise is still earnestly working on (but she found two goose feathers last night, and so feels one step closer--but that's another story).

Blowing her mind: We own a book on animal families, with lots of great photos, that we hadn't looked at in a long time. I pulled it out the other evening, and I'm surprised Naomi got any sleep at all that night. Any given page presented her with multiple pictures of mommy-baby pairs of dolphins, zebras, lions, rhinoceroses, penguins, raccoons and much, much more, with some sisters and daddies around as well. "I'm a baby giraffe, no I'm a baby lamb, no I'm a baby deer, no I'm a baby duckling! I'm this one, no I'm this one." Every turn of the page, Naomi was in baby-animal paradise. If only they were real--except for the big or creepy ones, of course.

Now, Naomi enjoys occasionally becoming specific animals from favorite stories. She's been Biscuit the puppy; Pete the puppy (from a library book); Pal and Penny the puppies (Pete's siblings); and the Poky Little Puppy. She insists, however, that she does not dig holes under fences, and we did, in fact, indulge in some strawberry shortcake not too long ago, just like her namesake almost did. (After all, she really doesn't dig holes under fences--and doesn't that deserve a reward?) Tonight during storytime, she took it another step and acted out the part of the Poky Little Puppy, including sniffing the ground and pretending to sleep.

This cuteness can't last forever, but I'm certain Naomi be up to something just as adorable next. And with any luck, it'll involve some more strawberry shortcake. Or at least a handful of bugs.

Three reasons I'm proud of Kalina

Although most of us would never admit it, there are times when we look at our toddlers and think, "Oh my. Aren't you the fixer-upper." We don't always phrase it so nicely, but we do set to work and try to wrestle them into not eating applesauce with their fingers (something Elise is still particularly challenged by), putting trash into the trash can instead of licking it and not absentmindedly walking off the playground structure. We're all works in progress, I suppose.

We work, and we work, and we nag, if only for the exhilarating moments when our kids toddle off and actually exhibit behavior we've been aiming for, and over which we realistically have not much control. This happens in small ways first (hooray! You stepped around the mud puddle!) and then in larger ways, and the clouds part and we spy a glimmer of hope that things will, actually, be okay even when we are no longer around to remind them five times to brush their teeth.

Kalina, fortunately, does not lick trash and rarely falls off of anything at all. Beyond that, we've seen signs that show she's growing not only in height, but also in depth.

Kalina and Elise at the end-of-the-year
presentation. Naomi sang along from
her seat.

Proud Moment #1: Memory Master
At the beginning of the year, just for fun (because what's not fun about classical learning? My poor kids...), we joined a classical learning co-op that focuses on memory work. We were hoping to make a few friends, get out of the house a bit and possibly even learn something.

As it turned out, the girls not only adored the co-op, but learned a lot. A ton. Pretty much everything, in fact. By winter, they were both begging me to "let" them try for Memory Master, an end-of-the-year challenge that would test everything covered that year, four times. No mistakes were allowed past round two. They were dying to try it.

I couldn't help but remember when Kalina was a young toddler and hated puzzles, hated shape sorters, generally hated a challenge. Anything she thought she couldn't do stressed her, so I either gave her lots of help or put the toys away.

On an AHG hike, we
met a teen who had
become mommy to
these baby ducklings.
He was mobbed by
8-year-old girls, and
kindly let us hold the
ducklings. "I will
never forget this day."

And so I couldn't say no to the challenge she so desperately wanted to take on, much as I knew I might regret it. After all, when a square doesn't fit into a triangle, it's stressful for the whole household. I could, however, say no to the five-year-old--or at least talk her into an alternative "event."

Kalina cheerfully spouted back Latin noun cases, parts of a plant cell, parts of the Byzantine Empire, the associative law for multiplication (and all the others), long lists of prepositions, her presidents, information about the dominion of Canada, and the entire timeline of the history of the world whenever I asked her. When she got them wrong, she uncharacteristically tried again, not once melting into a puddle on the floor (which, um, never happens, um, during spelling tests or anything...).

And the rest of the story is a non-story: Kalina sailed through all four rounds, and earned the title of Memory Master. We celebrated with food. Elise, who would've felt shorted if she hadn't been allowed her very own show-off night, showed off as well, and we then celebrated with more food.

This isn't the random friend in
question, but Kalina did
wrestle it from the lake. "I
felt like I was playing a shark!"

Proud Moment #2: Making a random new friend from a very different culture.
The other day at the park, Kalina decided she wanted to make a new friend. This would not seem like a big deal to a lot of parents, but I was reminded of the times young Kalina literally ran screaming from other children trying to be her friend, or at least play alongside her. "Ew, get them away!"

I okayed the idea (of course--she didn't really need to even ask) and Kalina approached a Muslim girl several inches taller than her. I couldn't overhear the conversation without appearing very snoopy, but soon I saw the girl solemnly following Kalina, and Elise by default, around the playground. Conversation was sparse enough that I concluded the girl spoke a different language, but I was wrong. Kalina discovered the girl's name, the fact that she doesn't speak Spanish (good guess, Kalina!), and the facts that she's nine and has several younger brothers and sisters. She isn't allowed to have playdates, which Kalina was bummed about.

Kalina patiently stayed with the girl, who clearly wasn't used to playing with strange girls around her age, and soon concluded that if she couldn't have a playdate, she'd like to write letters.

Why was I so proud? It's hard to be friends with someone not very much like you, and Kalina didn't give up or lose interest. She waited super patiently for 10-15 minutes, undaunted, while her new friend simply swung in the swing. She smiled quietly and looked out for her new friend's best interests. I would've struggled, but she seemed at her ease. And perhaps most importantly, she didn't run screaming away.

"I feel like I'm flying!"

Proud Moment #3: Two-wheel biking, knitting, ballet, scootering, cooking, Spanish--the list goes on.
At first I was going to write that Kalina's ballet teacher said she dances beautifully (which I knew, but was tremendously fun to hear from an expert). But then Kalina learned to knit in, like, one lesson. And I realized she had also recently learned to ride a bike with no training wheels. And then the next week her ballet teacher commented on how "precious" she is and that she always has something sweet to say about her sisters in class. Plus she's taking off with Spanish, uses her ears to figure out tunes on the piano and can lend a real hand in the kitchen (not one that spills flour all over me or sneaks tastes every five second). And she scooters around the block, supervised of course, adeptly and fearlessly. And she can juggle one Koosh ball.

Everyone is finger knitting, except
Naomi, who only thinks she is. This
led to needles for Kalina!

Okay, maybe some things are only pseudo-accomplishments, but the point remains: Kalina sure is growing! Sure, she still prefers to be on the same level of the house as everyone else (preferably the same room), she can stare off into space for 15 minutes while theoretically getting dressed in the morning and even Naomi's simplest stories catch her interest (especially away from math), but her new confidence and abilities have clearly signaled a new phase in development.

Kalina's certainly enjoying her new skills and I have to admit that I, too, am enjoying the transition from "Don't put your hand in your milk" to "Please clean up the milk you spilled," or even, not too far off, "Please turn this milk into pancakes for dinner tonight."

Congrats, Kalina!