Houdini

There is a small Houdini in the family, by the name of Nicholas. I am riding along in the car on the way back from a doctor's appointment. Both kids are in the second row of the van, Katie singing and talking to herself, Nicholas is making noise.

I stop at a red light as Nicholas says "Arm".

I respond, "What about your arm?" and turn around to look.

While strapped in his 5 point harness car seat, he has managed to pull his arm out of the sleeve of his shirt, and can't figure out how to get it back in. Mind you we are in a heated car, but it is only in the upper 30's outside.

He had also managed to place the sticker from the doctor's office carefully on the back of his head.

Of course, do I dare mention that he took both shoes and socks off on the way to the doctor....

Discipline

I must confess, I have a whacker. Also a hitter, smacker, tugger, puller, but primarily a whacker. He occasionally goes by the name of Nicholas, although we don't think that truly is his name. (He rarely responds to it). But if shown a picture of himself, he will say it is NICKO!

Anyway, how did I end up with this child. There have been days when I've wondered if the nurses brought me back the right child. After all, I was in that postpartum bleary world after having a baby. How did I know what he looked like? But his voice is remarkably like his sister's, and his face looks exactly like hers as well. So he must be mine.

Me, the psychologist, who specialized in child development. Who worked with parents and children with behavioral and emotional problems. I have been presented with the biggest challenge yet. Overcoming the whacker!

I make it sound funny, but it really isn't. He luckily so far doesn't hit other kids. His sister seems to be the only target thus far. And quite the target she is. Getting hit with a bucket, a plastic spoon, a plastic basket, and numerous hand slaps that I can't even count, just in the past 2 days. The problem as I see it, is that she reacts in such a dramatic way that she partially instigates him. I have tried coaching her in ways to stop her behavior and hopefully decrease his to no avail. So now my behavioral plan for him began yesterday, and boy am I exhausted.

Thankfully I have written my share of behavioral plans in the past and instituted them. So as of yesterday, Nicholas is stopped each time he hits, made to say he is sorry and hug his sister. He is not allowed to play with any toys until he has done so. Every time is a battle of wills. Mommy versus Nicholas. So far I seem to be winning, but my energy is quickly fading. I know we are in it for the long haul in an effort to end or at least decrease the behavior. I know that his behavior is supposed to get worse before it gets better just to make sure the limits are going to stick. But boy is it exhausting.

I know this is "normal" 2 year old behavior. Hopefully the plan works and peace will reign or at least make a showing every so often here.

Great Books

I am a happy book lover. I love to read, to peruse, to scan, and to enjoy. My husband is even more of a book lover and we have turned our two kids into book lovers too.





The latest book Katie and I finished reading was My Father's Dragon.

The book is enormously entertaining, and would be great for little boys. Better yet, it is a great first chapter book. The chapters are short and full of adventure. During the crocodile chapter, Katie yelled out, "Oh NO!". I thought something was wrong. She was just yelling to the book it turns out. She was so into it that she was worried about the Elmer being attacked by crocodiles.

If you haven't read a good book to your little ones in a while, this is a great one.

Dance Mania

I am crazy, but at least I know it. I have watched faithfully (when not putting the kids to bed) Dancing with the Stars for all 3 seasons now. I love it!! I am addicted! I will even go so far as to let Katie stay up late and watch with me, just so I don't have to miss part to put her to bed. Luckily for me, she loves the show too, and wants to grow up to be a dancer.

But maybe the obsession has gone too far. Now I have 2 tickets to the Dancing with the Stars Tour when it comes to Cincinnati. I bought 2 the first day they went on sale, and have grand hopes that a good friend will come in for the night and go with me. If not I will find a neighbor to go, or even Katie. I didn't care at the time who I would be going with, just the thrill of watching the show is enough for me.

Forgotten Halloween Picture

2 Year olds think literally.
When I asked Nicholas to show me his candy (meaning in the pumpkin bucket), this is what I got!!

Katie's Bedroom

Finally, I got a bed for Katie that I love. Isn't it gorgeous!! It matches her room perfectly. Of course, now we have to fix the doorframe, and do a little repainting, but hopefully all will work out.

I love this room! It is my favorite in the house for many reasons. We painted all the walls pink, and then I taped off the bottom portion where the chair rail and border would be. I made a glaze with a lighter pink and ragged it off. What I love most, is that the bottom part of the wall perfectly matches the marble look in her border. She wanted a princess room and she definately got one. Now I just need to find the perfect dresser to go with it.

This Is What Happens

This is what happens when your 4 year old gets trapped in her bedroom because the bolt broke inside the door, and Daddy breaks down the door to rescue her.

Fall Is Here To Stay

It is cold outside. I mean COLD!! And to think it is only November 2nd. I have at least 5 more months of this to look forward to.

Now don't get me wrong. I love the cold weather. The trees are gorgeous. Orange, Red, Yellow... provided they still have leaves. I look forward to seeing my little guys out in the snow this winter. I like wearing sweaters and warm clothing. I love heating water up at night for cocoa or cider. And fall is the perfect time to catch up on all that baking. The neighbors keep telling me, it is great for catching up on all those household projects you've been meaning to get to all summer as well.

The tough part is convincing my kids that wearing layers of clothing is a good thing. That keeping any clothes on for Nicholas is fairly important. That going outside when it is cold, windy and rainy isn't a reality. That colds will probably occur more often now.

As we all begin to recover from our various colds, I've become nostalgic for Texas weather and friends. I long for friends that I could call in the morning and get together with an hour later. I liked the ability to have just one season of clothes for a main wardrobe with a few winter clothes thrown in.

But cuddling under blankets with my 2 warm and snuggly children definately is worth the cold.

Happy Halloween!

Halloween was another cold and rainy day here. Nick is almost totally recovered from his ear infections and virus, and Katie seems to finally be on the upswing as well.

Katie went as the beautiful Princess Genevieve from Barbie and the 12 Dancing Princesses. This was a picture we took on Friday before trick-or-treating at Daddy's work. I never really got any good pictures of her last night. She did have a good time trick-or-treating with a few of the neighbors, but this year she was a little too sick to really enjoy herself. After going to about 15 houses she was ready to go home. Boy, going house to house here is quite a trek compared to Houston. Climbing up hills and the distance between houses is overwhelming when carrying a 2 year old puppy dog. But every single house was handing out treats. Our neighborhood is quite neighborly.

The kids enjoyed the rest of the night, handing out candy, and of course eating candy. Nicholas figured out the best way to trick-or-treat. While Daddy hands out candy to the other kids, take a few pieces for yourself, and carefully transfer them to your pumpkin. By the end of the evening, he had claimed a good 15 extra pieces for himself.

The Library

When we moved, I remember the poor movers saying, "What do you guys have here... a library?

Well, yes, sort of.

Mike and I are both pronounced book lovers, and have gradually warped our children into the same. It took Nicholas 2 years to catch on to what was so special, but he too now sits amid stacks of books, happily looking and reading.

So, as promised to a friend, here are some of our bookshelf pictures. This does not include the 15 or so boxes that remain unpacked in an upstairs bedroom.

Hopefully, we will get some new bookshelves made soon, and be able to neaten our little library.