The crappy week continues

It is 4:12 here right now. By this time if everything goes well Bohdin would be almost 2 hours into her nap and Nyla would be waking up from her longer nap. Instead she refused to take a morning nap and finally in exhaustion fell asleep at noon. Almost 30 minutes later she woke up. She was still tired but you can't force someone to sleep. I decided to stop at the library and the commissary while I had a chance. We weren't gone that long but in the time we were gone the washing machine delivery man arrived. I was told that it would be delivered on Thursday or Friday but when we had left there was no message indicating its imminent arrival. I thought I was safe. About 30 minutes later it showed up. Now it will be delivered on Monday hopefully. I don't know how it's going to work out since I'll be in Colorado then (fingers crossed) and Buddy can't sit around all day waiting for it. At least Bohdin and Nyla are playing nicely right now.

It rained yesterday afternoon so I thought it would be a little cooler in the evening. I stepped outside with the stroller and thought I had walked into a sauna. Or maybe one of those Korean 170 degree steam rooms. We went to the playground but we couldn't stay long. I was melting and getting eaten by bugs at the same time. When I came home Buddy had arrived and I directly handed Nyla to him.

me: I need to take a cold shower. I'm dying.
Buddy: Oh man. You do look bad.

Not the reaction I was looking for but I hope I looked better after a cold shower. I certainly felt better.

At last

Bohdin and Nyla are both asleep right now. This is Bohdin't first nap in what feels like years but is really a week. It has been driving me nuts to not have the breaks. In addition, Bohdin has been going through the house like a tornado. He needs more sleep than he has been getting. So now I can take a deep breath and enjoy the quiet for a little while.

I was at the end of my rope yesterday so Buddy came home from work early (6pm). I left Buddy with the kids and went to the mall. I haven't bought myself much new summer clothes in a long time. I needed some because the movers lost most of my shorts and all of my skirts. Last summer I was hugely pregnant so the stuff remaining was at least 2 years old. That's two years of dirty toddler hands and baby collar pulling. A lot of the stuff was on sale since it's getting close to the end of the season. I resisted the urge to look at kid stuff and focused on myself. I ended up with 2 pairs of shorts and 3 shirts. It was nice to be by myself. I need to do that more.

I finished up the laundry at a different laundromat this morning. It is so so hot and humid outside. We were all sweaty messes upon returning home. I can't believe so many people choose to live in humid climates. What's the appeal?

I'll be leaving for Colorado when I find two spots on the airplane sometime in the next few days. With the whole laundry thing, I haven't been able to go to the grocery store to prepare meals for Buddy while I'm gone. I've decided it is my goal to raise Bohdin to be self sufficient. Not just when he's alone but when he has a partner. Is there a guy out there who doesn't become a lazy blob when there is a girl in his life to take care of him? Do I have an unrealistic goal?

Long Long Days

Yesterday the washing machine repair man came to look at the washing machine. He was really nice and spent two hours here. Unfortunately he woke Nyla up and did not repair the machine. So Nyla was tired yesterday and she ended up sleeping later this morning. That threw her off schedule so I decided to head to the laundromat if she wasn't going to sleep. I did 5 loads of laundry of which 3 came out clean. The other two will need to be redone including the load of diapers which can't wait. I need them so I can pack. At least some of Bohdin's socks are now clean. He doesn't like wearing his socks without shoes. We get a new washing machine later this week but it's too late to help me.

It was a long afternoon yesterday with the repairman and Nyla not sleeping. She was fussy and tired but refused to sleep. I made meatloaf for dinner which Nyla loved. Buddy ended up being shortchanged since Nyla ate so much of it. If we hadn't gone swimming after dinner there might not have been any left by the time Buddy came home. Somebody knocked on the door while I was serving dinner. It was our old downstairs neighbors. We had problems with these people from the day we moved in. These units are not built well and we have wood floors and a little boy. We were always too loud for them. They eventually moved out and found a tenant. I've spoken with her a few times and everything seemed okay. Well our old neighbors came to inform me that they wrote a letter to our landlord because their tenant complained of noise.

Nyla is awake now from her mini nap. No break for me today.

For a laugh after that downer post check out this blog of professional cake wrecks. I like the wedding cake gone wrong, and the creepy baby, and well most of them. There are about 3 pages.

Birthday part 2

As I assumed, Nyla would have liked anything better than birthday cake. I wasn't even going to offer her some but Buddy did. You can see the results below.

 
 

We didn't do the birthday thing until after 8 because we had to wait for Buddy to get home. Bohdin hadn't taken a nap and was tired so it was really fast. We forgot to open presents. Today Grandma Thompson, Skip, and Yodonna came to visit so we opened them then. All of the presents to unwrap with the exception of one came courtesy of Nana. Bohdin gave Nyla the book he earned for participating in the library summer reading program. It was not his idea but he went along with it. We didn't get her anything. Thanks to everyone who sent presents and cards. Bohdin's favorite present is the cash register. He also is really enjoying his remote control car from our wonderful visitors.
 

 

It was great seeing Grandma Thompson, Skip, and Yodonna. I love hearing about all of their travels in their motorhome. An unstructured road trip is such a neat way to experience the country. Maybe we'll do that someday.

Birthday part 1

Bohdin thought we should do a birthday cake with a candle so I let him pick out a cake mix from the store. When I came home and looked at the ingredients there was more sugar than flour. There was a ton of other crap in it so I decided we would make one from scratch. What kind of cake has more sugar than flour? Bohdin wasn't too bummed because I told him we would use the cake mix for his birthday. He has a really long memory but I'm hoping he'll forget. Bohdin enjoys baking and was able to help. His job is to take out the eggs, cut the butter and leveling the flour in the cup. He also decided to spoon the batter into the pan. Afterwards he was so excited to clean up. He uses a ton of water but we can work on that.

Bohdin spooning batter
 

Cleaning up - He was actually whining because I was taking to long the take the rest of the batter off the spoon before he could clean it.
 

Cake decorating - Bohdin picked out the sprinkles
 

The birthday girl
 

Happy Birthday

It's been a long morning so I'll just leave it at this.

 

Two weeks
 

Five months
 

Nine months
 

Birth story:
As Bohdin was going down for his nap around 2, I told him to tell the baby to come out. He leaned over my belly and said "Come out baby" then looked at me and said the baby was still in my belly. He woke up from his nap a little early, just before 4. I had a few contractions while laying down next to hum but that wasn't unusual. We went downstairs and I realized I had to pee. Bohdin and I went to the bathroom together. As I was waiting for him to finish up I had a strong contraction. I thought it might be time. We went for a walk and then I got into the tub for a while. Buddy got everything ready to go. We arrived at the hospital just after 7. I was monitored for a few minutes and then checked. I was 4 cm dilated. I finished watching So You Think You Can Dance and then walked around a bit. I needed to be monitored again because the baby's heartrate had been high earlier. I stood during the monitoring and my contractions became much stronger. I decided to get into the tub. It was between 9 and 10 pm at this point. I labored in the tub a while and was disappointed that the contractions were still so intense. The contractions were every 2-3 minutes apart. Eventually between contractions Nyla would move like crazy. I was not having any break and it was becoming extremely tiring. I asked for drugs. The midwife asked if I wanted to be checked and I agreed. I was 8 cm. The midwife said Nyla was so low that if she broke my water we could just have the baby. I didn't think I could take it anymore. I just wanted some rest. I had to get out of the tub to get an iv put in. They managed to put it in. While I was waiting for the drugs I started pushing. I needed a break so bad I was going to get one somehow. It felt good to push. Nyla moved so much between each contraction. I think she was trying to push her way out any way she could. I kept waiting and waiting for the drugs. They set up for the birth. My water broke with a pop. After what everybody claims was 10 minutes of pushing (I think it was hours) Nyla was born. I never had a chance to receive my drugs. It was such a relief to have her out. I was exhausted. They put her on my belly but I don't remember much of anything after that. I was enjoying my rest.

I wrote that just over a year ago. Nyla's birth was so much nicer than Bohdin's. It was also empowering. Having a baby without drugs is one of the coolest things I'll ever do. In hindsight if I hadn't gotten into the tub earlier I would have had an easier time. Nyla didn't like it when I got in the water. Whenever I went to the pool she would kick like crazy for hours afterwards. I stopped going to the pool because it wasn't worth the pain afterwards. I didn't realize the tub would have the same effect on her. I like to think she's been strong willed from before birth.

She's changed a lot this past year. She's a very welcome addition to the family. Happy Birthday Nyla.

Bath Time

We didn't do much yesterday. Bohdin hadn't put his toys away in days so I just put them in plastic bags and put them away. The sad part is he has yet to really notice. He sort of saw me do it and I told him I was doing it but no real reaction yet. We just have too many toys. Since the rug was basically cleared off I decided to rearrange a bit. That took my morning. The afternoon and evening had uneventful grocery shopping.

We went to the playground in the evening and the little boy with the weird dad was there again. Bohdin had the best time playing with him. We were there for over an hour. I stuck close to Nyla and didn't talk to the dad much. Nyla played on the smaller playground structure and enjoyed it. Next time I'll have to bring the camera. I hated to end his good time but it was getting late and rain was threatening. We made it home as the first drops started falling.

Bohdin loves to play chase and he and the little boy ran around for quite some time. Bohdin ran around screaming like a girl. It was a short high pitched scream. I take the blame on this one. Whenever he would chase me I would give a mock scream. Now he does it but I wish he wouldn't. I need to stop doing at as well. I had no idea how annoying it sounded.

Nyla was dirty from crawling around the playground and Bohdin was sweaty so it was bath time upon coming home. Nyla likes to watch Bohdin take a bath and has wanted to get in on several occasions only to immediately want out again. Last night she wanted in and stayed in. It was the first time they've taken a bath together without an adult in there with them. It seems like a huge milestone. Nyla was making silly faces by smashing her face into the glass. I wish I had a picture of that.

 

Buddy wins the walking bet. According to Bohdin, our neutral 3rd party, she started walking on Tuesday or Monday. Whichever day those videos were filmed. We went to the pool that day and Nyla was walking around like usual. Bohdin looked up and said "Nyla is walking" very excitedly. He said it again later. I didn't notice a difference from the previous day. Bohdin declares her as walking.

Since Todd mentioned it, I'll talk about it briefly. For a long time Bohdin would only sing the ABC sing. Out of the blue one day he sang Row Your Boat. He sang it correctly but now prefers his silly versions. One of his favorite things to do is say silly things. It's an age thing. An ongoing joke for us is "Have you been eating a ___ muffin?" The blank has been filled with everything from bacon to truck. On the way out of the commissary yesterday Bohdin noticed they had dug up Green Island which is our name for the raised bed outside the store. I told him it looked like brown island now so we went off naming different islands - orange island, car island, etc. When he finally asked if I had ever seen road island I chuckled. I never have been to Rhode Island but I ought to.

See those comments are useful. They help me with things to write. I'll talk about the comments regarding prices another day. I still need to decide what to do for Nyla's birthday tomorrow.

No Smoking

We went to the playground the other night and Bohdin wanted to play store. I was being eaten by mosquitoes so I told him we would set up a store when we got home. I remembered yesterday so I set it up for him. He decided he needed some signs for his store. He wrote these signs all by himself except for the N in open. He also has a no eating and no playing sign. I thought he did a great job writing it. I also had to cover up some of the paper so his letters would fit the page.

 

Just FYI you can click on the pictures to make them larger.

Our washing machine broke yesterday during a load of diapers. Luckily I suppose I ran a rinse cycle first so they're not as dirty as could be. I still have to fish them out of the sudsy water. I'm postponing that. I'll have to go to somebody's house or more likely a laundromat today to get them washed. Nyla pees a lot and since she's been going around with just a diaper I tend to change her after one pee. Anybody who thinks this is obvious either doesn't have babies or know how often they pee. Babies usually are sitting in wet diapers. We havne't heard back from the landlord about what will happen. Part of the standard rental agreement in this area is a repair deductible. Ours is quite low for the area at $100. I don't know how much washing machine repair costs. My guess is the motor is shot. It's not getting electrical power and I checked the fuse box. The agitator hadn't been working very well for a few months.

I don't usually respond to anonymous comments but I'm posting some video of Nyla walking.


This one is Nyla trying to play chase with Bohdin.

Keep Running

When I talked to Buddy last night he said the blog post was short and incomplete. In particular I left out details from the last story. Nyla woke up as I started typing so I was in a hurry to finish it. This is what she was doing as I was typing. The battery cord for the computer was next.

 

One thing I left out yesterday was that Bohdin has mastered rhyming. Sometimes he just makes up a rhyming word but it does indeed rhyme. When Bohdin started doing this last week he usually replaced the first letter of the word with "f" to make it rhyme. Buddy and I knew that a particular word would be inevitable and sure enough he was thinking of a rhyme with truck. He found one. I supressed a giggle well enough that he hasn't said it since. He's also really good with his shapes now. That Meet the Shapes video worked. He checked out Meet the Letters yesterday. He knows all of his letters but I heard him say during part of it that "H" is 2 lines down and one across. Maybe it will help him write better. I don't know. It must be more educational than Thomas.

One of the employees in Bloom (grocery store) nearby cornered me yesterdy and was telling me about his granddaughter. He was talking about how expensive it was compared to when he was raising his daughters in the late 70s and early 80s. He mentioned a stroller is over $100. He said the working class is being left behind. I couldn't agree with him. I think people feel entitled now to a lifestyle they can't afford. Sure there are strollers that cost $100. Some cost much much more but there are perfectly fine strollers that cost less or can be bought used. I don't think babies have to be as expensive as people make them. There are thrift stores and garage sales full of hardly used baby items. If I made millions of dollars Bohdin and Nyla would be dressed as cutely as the babies of Hollywood celebreties but we don't so each have to make do with one pair of shoes and no designer tees. With the exception of carseats, there are a lot more unnecessry must have items compared to thirty years ago.

On a lighter note, Bohdin loves to run. He is like our own little personl trainer because when we go outside he'll say "Let's run" or "On the count of 3 start running" or "Let's see who's faster". When we do start running all we hear is "Keep running", "Come on", "Don't stop", "Run faster". It is a little sad tht my 3 year old can outdistance me. I'm still faster though at lest for a little while.

Catch Up

I haven't felt like posting recently and I don't today either but should catch up. Nyla hasn't been sleeping well recently. Some people say that sleep worsens during a developmental milestone and that is certainly the case here. As a result sleep schedules are thrown off. On Friday Bohdin ended up sleeping late. I figured he wouldn't take a nap that day and just go to bed earlier. He said he wasn't tired. I put Nyla down for her nap later than usual and Bohdin watched a video. When I went to check on him later he was asleep. That's the first time ever he has fallen asleep by himself for a nap.

 

Bohdin almost always is still asleep when Nyla wakes up from her nap. She usually plays while I get dinner ready. She is going through the learning to walk clinginess phase so I just put her on my back while I cut chicken. Buddy came home early and caught me in the act.
 


Bohdin puts his food in the refridgertor when he's done eating to save for later. One day he had a huge piece of bread with 2 pieces of cheese and multiple slices of ham. He ate part of it then put the rest away. He took it back out again later that night. He still gets hungry before bedtime. In the morning all that was left was this little piece. He was full and put the rest in the fridge. I think most people would have just finished it. That's probably why our country is overweight. We lose the ability to let a little piece of food go.
 

 



Our community had an outdoor screening of Bee Movie which Bohdin and Buddy went to see Saturday night. Buddy said that Bohdin really enjoyed it. Bohdin couldn't tell me what the movie was about beyond it having bees.

We went to Annapolis yesterday to run some errands. I stopped at Joanns to get 2 things. Bohdin asked if the store had a potty. It did not. It was really hot and late. I didn't want to run across the parking lot to Trader Joes for the bathroom and come right back and get my 2 items. I was already in line. Bohdin said he could wait. I had a terrible cashier who overcharged me and then couldn't figure out I needed a dime back. After the purchase was made we ran across the parking lot to the bathroom. They really ought to have a bathroom.

Vegetarian

Bohdin was grumpy after dinner so we all headed outside. Buddy had asked Bohdin if he wanted to see Wall-E at the theater but he said no. He of course changed his mind later but it was too late. He decided he wanted to go to the movie store so we walked to Blockbuster and then the grocery store for the Lipton Iced Green Tea Buddy has fallen in love with. On our way to the playground afterwards an older gentleman stopped to admire the kids. I think he was just using it as an in to start talking to us but whatever. He proceeded to tell us the story of his 37 year old baby girl who is a computer something in Manhattan. He told us that she lives on 5th Ave and 30th St with her husband Peter. He went on and then mentioned that she was a vegetarian and became one in college. "One day she showed up at the door at home and said this Peter, my husband. Peter is the last piece of meat she ate." I don't know how many ways there are to interpret that but I could only think of one. When he started the story again I left to find Bohdin who had run ahead to the playground. Buddy said he told the story 3 times.

Nyla is by no means a vegetarian yet. She's a meat eater. Everybody keeps asking if I'm going to make her a smash cake for her birthday. I put a piece of banana bread on her plate yesterday. She looked at it and thought about touching it but then decided not to. Maybe I'll make her a meatloaf instead. She would like that much better.

Nyla's walking skills have improved dramatically the past few days. She's taking more steps and she is choosing to walk instead of crawl more often. Buddy is going on trip this Sunday and won't be back until Friday. I think he is going to be surprised at her progress when he gets back. She could be a completely different baby by then. She will also be one when he gets back.

When Bohdin went to the playground yesterday a boy was playing on the play structure and dropped his ball. Bohdin went to get it for him but was a little timid. On his second attempt he picked up the ball and asked the little boy if he could borrow it. The boy told him he shouldn't pick up stuff that wasn't his. I was proud of Bohdin for talking to him. He's getting better at approaching kids. The little boy was playing with the ball by pretending to be Indiana Jones and looking for it. I felt a little bad for Bohdin that he had said no despite my post of yesterday. They ended up playing together anyway so it worked out okay.

How to not share

Bohdin went to a friend's house to play yesterday. His friend was a little grumpy due to hunger and tiredness. For most of the visit they played together nicely or played separately. This little boy had a sandwich while Bohdin was playing. After he was done eating, he started playing with a toy that had been out the entire time. They had actually played with it a bit earlier. Bohdin wanted a turn. They took turns. Then the boy moved on to a ball which had been sitting out the whole time. Bohdin asked him to share. The little boy was already grumpy and didn't want to share the ball he had just picked up. The ball ended up going in time out. Both of the boys were upset they couldn't play with the ball. We ended up going home shortly afterwards. On the walk home I tried explaining to Bohdin that while it's nice to share, it's not required. What he should have done was just wait a few minutes before asking for a turn. He had hardly picked the ball up before Bohdin pounced on him. There were several other balls laying around. I told Buddy about it at dinner and he thought it was a difficult message to navigate. How do I promote sharing at the same time saying it's okay not to share? That seems especially hard at 3 when a child can really be pushed to share and judged harshly when not sharing. When an adult doesn't share something it's usually not a big deal. Lots of people don't loan out their cars or money or their time. A ball is even more important for a brief time to a 3 year old.

The post is late today because Bohdin woke up at 6. Nyla ended up waking up also and then we were all up. Buddy, Nyla, and I went back to sleep but it threw off Nyla's day. She was tired at naptime but wouldn't sleep. On the positive side, I've done a lot of work. I finally folded the huge stack of clean clothes that had piled up, I washed the sheets, and we cleaned the bedroom a bit. It was covered in crumbs when Bohdin ate fish crackers on the floor yesterday. On the negative side, we didn't make it to the grocery store. It will be a creative dinner tonight or we'll eat some of the banana bread or fruit cobbler I made yesterday.

Fine Young Cannibals

Buddy chose this post title at lunch yesterday. Since he was going to be home really late, he called and asked us to meet him for lunch. I packed up the ribs that Buddy had put in the slow cooker the previous evening along with some beans, coleslaw, and cherries. We ate at the playground near his work. Bohdin put too much meat in his mouth and had to take it out. He put part of it on the ground and asked if birds like people ribs. Buddy said that vultures like to eat meat. Then Bohdin asked if we like to eat people ribs. We do not.

I stopped at the commissary quickly while Buddy stayed at the playground with the kids. It felt like a vacation to go by myself. I was quiet the entire time. Normally our trips sound like this: We're not going to buy any pistachios. We don't need bananas today. We already have broccoli at home. Go get a green bean for Nyla so she'll stop fussing. We're not going to buy that. We're not getting that. Can you get out of that person's way? Don't do that, it's dangerous. We're not getting sushi. Yes, you can put it in the basket.
It just goes on and on. So it was nice to be in the store and not talk to Bohdin or have his help.

I really enjoy and appreciate the comments that people make. I tallied the numbers for June and it looks like Paul won in a squeaker for 1st place.

Paul - 12
Todd - 11
Mom - 9

Here are my two favorite comments:
Isn't Bohdin about 50 years too young for the black socks and shorts look? Anna

I remember my first trip to the beach as a kid, I did the same thing as Bohdin, letting the water move the sand around my feet; at that point in time, it was the freakiest, yet coolest, feeling in the world. Can't even begin to tell you how long I stood there doing it. Cap'n Neurotic

The World is His Peeground

We went to Walmart yesterday to pick up some pictures to send to Buddy's grandmother who turns 80 today. Happy Birthday. As I was buckling Nyla into her carseat Bohdin pulls down his shorts and underwear and pees right there in the parking lot. This is the third time in a week that he has peed outside like that. The first time was in the parking lot at the playground while I was buckling Nyla in again. I came around to his side and there is a puddle on the ground. When I asked about it he said he had peed. I carry a potty in the car with me. The other time was at the swimming pool. We decided to change him back into his clothes after swimming because it had become a tad chilly to be wet. When he took off his wet bathing suit he just peed right there on the pool deck. When I saw what he had done today in the parking lot we had this conversation:
me: I have a potty in the car.
Bohdin: Well it's too late now.
me: Um. Okay. Well next time let me know and I'll get the potty for you.
Bohdin: Okay

Buddy says that Bohdin's comment sounds like me. I'm not surprised since he has stolen many of my comments.

I thought I might take some time and respond to some comments. When Buddy saw the video of Bohdin and the fabric cube over Nyla's head he said some people might have intervened. I agree and when I watched the video I thought that would be a common thought. Nyla is really really good at telling a person when she doesn't like something. I did intervene as soon as she stopped liking it.

Paul commented that Nyla would get picked on for a long time. Buddy disagrees. He says that Nyla is strong and is meaner than Bohdin so she will be the one to watch.

Cap'n Neurotic mentioned missing out on the sibling relationship since he was an only child. I love seeing the two of them have fun together. It is so much more work to have 2 kids but it will be worth it. The sibling relationship is generally the longest relationship of your life. I hope they always find as much comfort in each other as they do now. I know not all sibling relationships are great but I'm fortunate to have good ones. Most of my favorite memories of childhood involve Paul. Even as adults he's an important part of my life.

Walking update: Nyla is not taking any more steps than she was several weeks ago. She stands and thinks about walking at times but will usually decide to crawl. She is doing a better job of standing from a crawling position. She used to use a wall or another object to help her up.

Clean Up

Last night Bohdin and I made popcorn together. I think the air popped variety is better and I think Bohdin agrees. He was taking the big bowl off the counter when it slipped and almost the entire contents emptied onto the floor. I didn't know what to say. We didn't have enough brewer's yeast left to make another batch. The floor was relatively clean. While I was making up my mind Bohdin started to push the popcorn into a pile so he could put it back in the bowl. I grabbed the bowl and emptied out the clean popcorn for myself before helping him pick up the popcorn off the floor. If he thought it was still good enough to eat, I wasn't going to argue. We picked up as much as we could. Bohdin got the broom and swept up the crumbs into a pile for me. (He's good with a broom.) Then he got the vacuum so I could get it off the rug in the kitchen. I thought he did a nice job cleaning up and I never had to say a word.

Later we were reading books. He went into the kitchen to get some more OJ and brought it into the bedroom. He poured himself a cup. He took the cup from the nightstand and then peed his pants. It was so random and unlike him. He told he would get the baking soda to clean it. He took off his dirty pajamas and got new ones and cleaned up the mess. I had to help him more with this one since it was carpet. I don't understand why he did that. Nyla has been going without a diaper a bit recently and has peed but not on the carpet. I don't know if that was a factor or if he just wanted to clean the carpet which he enjoys doing. Unfortunately he's not very good at cleaning the carpet so he is just a helper while I do the hard scrubby work.

I went to the commissary (military grocery store) on Friday. Soon after I entered I smelled something. I sniffed neat Nyla's butt and thought she had pooped. It wasn't Nyla though. It was the smell of rotting produce. Have I ever mentioned what a ghetto area we live in? The dad I was talking to at the playground the other day has lived all over the northern US and he said this is by far his least favorite place. His favorite is Chicago in case anyone is interested and he grew up in Cleveland which he also likes.

Book Report

We haven't checked out new books from the library in three weeks. Bohdin tends to get tired of the books after about one week so I haven't read most of these books in a while.

Big time Olie / by William Joyce - Bohdin really loved this book which was a followup to Rolie Polie Olie. We read the original last year but he seems better suited to it now. This book did have a little singing. He also liked the Rolie Polie video we checked out during the same time.

Bunny, my Honey / Anita Jeram - a book about a little rabbit getting lost. It's pretty forgettable.

I call it sky / Will C. Howell - Bohdin isn't ready for this book. He chose it but wasn't interested in reading it.

Loopy / Aurora Jesset - Terrible book. Just very poorly written. It sounds like a poor writer was trying to remember what it was like to be a kid and failed miserably.

Moo Cow Kaboom / Thacher Hurd - Good book but it was a bit over Bohdin's head. We'll check it back out in a few years.

The Night Eater / Ana Juan - Fine story about a creature that eats the night away. After getting teased about his weight he stops eating the night leaving the world in 24 hour darkness. A sliver of night comes into his mouth and he's off eating the night again.

Peekaboo morning / Rachel Isadora - This book was better suited for younger readers. Bohdin still enjoyed it.

Trains : steaming! pulling! huffing! / by Patricia Hubbell - This book was a repeat for us but Bohdin still loves it. The whole series is enjoyable but not as much when I have to read it ten times a day.

Boom Chicka Rock / John Archambault - Nice idea but poor execution. Another awful book

The bunnies are not in their beds / by Marisabina Russo - Bohdin really enjoyed this book. I liked the illustrations. The bunnies keep getting up and playing different things and each time they are dressed in costume. Those cute outfits always made me smile.

Five for a little one / Chris Raschka - This felt like a series of poems about the five senses. Bohdin really enjoyed this one a lot also.

Seven stories / by Ed Briant - Not appropriate for Bohdin. It pulls elements from seven classic fairy tales. Bohdin wasn't familiar enough with those stories to "get" the book.


I took Bohdin and Nyla to the playground last night after dinner. There was a little boy there who was four weeks younger than Bohdin. Bohdin is not very good at approaching kids (even worse with adults). He wants to play with them but he doesn't know how. This little boy made it easy for Bohdin since he sort of latched on to Bohdin and sort of copied what he was doing. They had a great time running around and playing together. I had to talk to the dad though to get him off of his son's back so they could just play together. His dad was telling him he was running too slow or he should do this or do that. The first thing they did was play store. At first the little boy told Bohdin he wanted cereal but then went around and got it himself and gave it to his dad. I asked Bohdin for ice cream and Bohdin wanted to know what flavor. The little boy handed ice cream to his dad so his dad seeing what Bohdin said wanted to know what flavor it was. The little boy just said ice cream again. The dad had already told me that his son was a little slow. It just doesn't seem like a big deal to me that Bohdin asked what flavor. It doesn't make him a genius. It just means that we eat a lot of different flavors of ice cream and that we've played store several times before. I hope I never pull that kind of stuff with Bohdin or Nyla.

Love

The past several days I've been impressed with how well Bohdin has been taking care of Nyla. It's fun to hear him say the exact same things I say to her. When she gets fussy, he'll run to get her a carrot or a toy. When she has something she shouldn't, he'll take it away and give her something appropriate. In the car, I ask Bohdin to sing to her when she's crying and it usually calms her down. When we were in Philly on the bus one day, Nyla started fussing. Without prompting Bohdin started belting out the ABC song. He's by no means always nice.

Bohdin trying to ride Nyla.
 

Bohdin holding Nyla's foot while walking down the street.
 

Bohdin covering Nyla with a fabric cube. All of that stuff scattered around used to be in the cube but Nyla emptied it out. He also tried to play "make the box move" the other day which involved covering her with a cardboard box and watching her crawl. I put an end to that game quickly. She wasn't complaining but at the very least a bigger box was needed.



Bohdin received some new things for his Thomas track yesterday from Nana. He loves it all but I think his favorite is the risers which allows us to build higher track. He's been having a lot of fun with his new stuff.

Farmer's Market

I finally made it to the farmer's market which is a short walk from the house. I was disappointed in the size and selection. There were 6 booths with only 3 having produce. The amount and type was quite limited. They were selling varieties I could buy in the grocery store. It sure made me miss our garden. I did buy some corn which was fine. We haven't eaten the squash yet but if it's not tasty I may not go back. In California, the produce is amazing. In Colorado it was pretty good since the major grocery stores carried local produce when possible. That's not possible here so we have to eat produce that has been shipped across the country.

I don't think I've done a good job of capturing Nyla but that has been difficult for me. I don't want to write something that's not very nice and with Nyla's temperament there is a lot I could write. She was crying like her world ended yesterday when I wouldn't let her put the sharp seam ripper in her mouth. We have those kind of struggles often and the frequency will be increasing as she gets older. There is one great thing that I've never mentioned. Nyla loves taking showers. When she hears the water running she comes racing into the bathroom and pleads to get in. That was difficult when Buddy was gone because I prefer to take a shower without her. It's easier to wash my hair and stuff with 2 hands. The times I do take her in, I can see why Buddy loves taking her in the shower. Nyla is a great hugger and she hugs in the shower. Buddy does a great job of getting her clean but he really does it for the hugs. There have been several instances when she has fallen asleep in the shower. She's awake now so that is all for today.

She Doesn't Understand

Bohdin does a great job sharing all of his things with Nyla. That's a great thing because Nyla wants everything that Bohdin touches including his Sigg bottle. Nyla started taking some sips of water from Bohdin's bottle so I thought I could give her his old sippy cup. She doesn't want it. She wants Bohdin's bottle. Yesterday in the car Bohdin passed his bottle to Nyla. She took a swig then dropped it between the seats. Bohdin picked it back up again, took a drink and handed it back to Nyla. She dropped it by her feet. Bohdin wanted it back and was pleading with her. "Please. Please. Can you give me cup back?" I tried to explain that she doesn't understand yet what he's saying.

One of Bohdin's favorite games right now is "Who can step on whose shadow?" He wants to play whenever we go outside. Mostly it gives him an excuse to run away. It's a great game to play when we want him to go faster though.

Buddy told me I forgot to include something from our Philly trip report. Bohdin's other favorite things was the revolving doors of the hotel. We're still asked to tell stories about going on the purple bus to get ice cream. Yesterday he played parking garage with his bike, using the dishwasher as a gate. I handed him the ticket. He got off his bike, went to the museum (his play bedroom) and then came back to give me the ticket. We also played subway.

ABC Order

Paul gave Bohdin some workbooks a while ago. He finished one of them pretty quickly but was stuck on the others for various reasons. Yesterday he pulled out the ABC order workbook and finished half of it. He was ready to try writing the letters himself. I think he did a pretty good job for his first try. Half of the workbook is upper case letters and the second half is lower case letters. He must be exposed to more upper case letters in his daily life because he didn't want to write the small letters. Twenty six at a time is probably enough anyway.

On the way to the pool last night Buddy and Nyla were on one side of the street and Bohdin and I were on the other. We were sort of racing. Bohdin and I were further behind since we had already crossed the street. A car passed us and Bohdin pointed out that the car "zoomed past Daddy and Nyla". He said this in a manner that implied that Daddy was really slow to get passed by a car. It never occurred to him that we were passed by that same zooming car.

Summer of Traffic

We had a late start to the day. After checking out we had breakfast and headed to the Constitution Center which is near Independence Hall. Buddy got in free since he is a defender of the Constitution. Apparently I am not and had to pay full admission. They do a performance type thing in the beginning which was interesting. I spent a lot of energy keeping Nyla from being too noisy so I couldn't give it my full attention. Nevertheless, I thought it was good. After the performance, we were herded into the upstairs museum portion. The museum was set up in a circle with a linear progression over time about how the constititution has been challenged and ammended. There were many interactive displays. The earlier topics covered the debate over the constitution itself (the split into the House and Senate was passed by 1 vote with nobody happy with it) to a federal bank and slavery. Towards the present the topics were mostly Supreme Court rulings. I thought it was a fascinating museum and wish I could have had more Bohdin free time to explore it.

I forgot to mention that part of our breakfast was more gelato. Today we had 2 cups with 3 flavors each. Buddy had the chocolate hazelnut, cinnamon, and lime with lime being his favorite. I had the cinnamon, blueberry, and peach. I didn't like the peach as much so Bohdin ate most of that. He wanted the orange flavor but we have some orange gelato in our freezer at home so I wanted something different.

For lunch we had a Philly speciality which is the pulled pork sandwich with sharp provolone and greens. The greens are broccoli rabe. We also had a chicken cutlet sandwich. In all we tried many of best of the city's offerings. We didn't try a cheesesteak because the best in the city as closed on the weekend. That sandich has over 1000 calories so I don't want to waste that many calories on crap. We need to save something for our next visit anyway. I need to drive back and get more of that gelato. Just FYI, Iron Chef Morimoto has a restaurant in Philly. Since we're not raw fish lovers I don't think we'll ever make it there but it does show that Philly is a good food city.

We tried to avoid two of the toll booths on the way back by taking a longcut. It was successful but perhaps a bit slower. We'll never know for sure. We saw huge backups northbound on the interstate going through the toll booths. We had heavy traffic but it didn't slow us down too much. What should have been a 2 hour trip took over 3 hours due to multiple child stops and traffic. Our summer of fun plan may need to be reworkded since the millions of people who live around here take weekend trips.

On the drive up to Philly Bohdin decided to play store and sell ice cream. I purposely chose to drive so the playing duties would fall to Buddy. On the trip down Buddy and I alternated telling him stories. He was relentless in his asking. Nothing would distract him from asking for another story. In the hotel he liked to play bus and office. We had 2 phones and Bohdin would "call" different things on the other line. Buddy spent a lot of time playing with him this weekend.

On the way back down we discussed our favorite parts. Buddy liked looking at the buildings. There was a lot of neat architecture in the area including many murals painted on the sides. I liked the Constitution Center. We all loved the gelato. Bohdin said his favorite part was the museum but I'm positive it was not. Anytime we went near one he said he didn't want to go in. When we were inside he asked if it was time to go. I think his favorite part was riding the purple bus. He wanted to go on the subway but it wasn't really going where we were.

It was a good trip but a little tiring. There was a lot of walking and even more cajoling. I think we need to do something even more laid back next trip. Perhaps camping.


Eating a pork sandwich in Reading Terminal
 

Scooping up the gelato from his shirt
 

Playing store in the car
 

Playing bus in the hotel room
 

Try #2

I wrote a post this morning but it didn't make it so here is try #2. Since Paul asked for hotel details I will give them. When I was researching hotels the 4 star rates were pretty similar to the 3 star rates so I decided to try for a 4star on Priceline. When my $85 bid was rejected I decided to just go with a 3 star. We ended up with the Marriot at $70. It's possible I could have gotten it for slightly less but my bidding strategy wasn't very good. The hotel was near Reading Terminal and City Hall. We were less than a mile from Independence Hall.

On Saturday morning we went to Reading Terminal for breakfast. Reading Terminal is a collection of food places and markets under one roof. It's sort of a food court combined with a farmer's market. The Pennsylvania Dutch have a large area there selling things from baked goods to pickles. We had blueberry pancakes from what is supposed to be the best in the city. I'm not a restaurant breakfast fan and I thought these were fine. We also split a cinnamon roll which was tasty and interesting and picked up some fruit. We spent so much time wandering around it was time for Nyla's nap.

After Nyla's nap we caught the bus to the Rodin museum. A bronze replica of the Thinker and Gates of Hell were outside. We decided against going inside because Bohdin wasn't being very cooperative. Instead we caught the bus and headed to the Art Museum. This is the location where Rocky ran up the steps. The museum is located on a hill above a park that flanks a river. It's a pretty area and we explored a little. We were hoping to rent a bike and trailer from the shops near there but they didn't have trailers. We found a playground and ate a hoagie and a pretzel we picked up from the Reading Terminal.

Buddy and I were getting hot and tired so we made the trek back up to the bus stop at the Art Museum. We had to wait forever for the bus along with a million other people. The bus was extremely cramped and hot. Nyla was tired. It was a very long trip back to the hotel and we ended up getting off at an ealier stop and walking because we couldn't take it anymore.

After Bohdin and Nyla's nap we headed out for dinner. We wandered around the Rittenhouse House square area which is the upscale theater and shopping district. We stopped for pizza at what is supposed to be the best pizza in the city. It was okay. We then walked to the best gelato place in the city and it was excellent. It's the best gelato I've had in America. Bohdin picked Kiwi, I picked Chocolate Hazelnut, and Buddy picked Coconut. They were all delicious but mine was the best. Buddy agreed with me but Bohdin did not. We headed back to the hotel before trying to catch the fireworks later. On our way we walked through the city hall building which was more amazing than we would have thought. We had a view of it from our hotel room and didn't really think too much about it. The building has a very large courtyard in the center with views in each cardinal direction. A plaque said it is the largest civic building in the US. It may also be the prettiest.

It was so nice to put up our feel at the hotel. Bohdin still had boundless energy despite walking just as far as we had that day. We were too lazy to walk the mile plus to the waterfront where the fireworks were being held. At 9:15 I went outside with Bohdin to see if we could see them from the street by our hotel. They hadn't started yet. I went back in to ask the concierge about the fireworks and he suggested going to the top of the Loews hotel next door since it is the largest building. I forgot to tell Buddy where Bohdin and I were going so he ended up walking toward the river to try to see the show. In the meantime Bohdin and I were luckily able to sneak into an area that requires a key to watch the fireworks. There were a handful of other families there. While we had a good view the show was a bit of a letdown. Fireworks aren't the same from indoors. It would have been better to see a smaller show with a more accessible and closer view. Live and learn.

 
In Fairmount park near the Art Museum

 
At the Rodin Museum

 
Hot and thirsty waiting for the bus

City Hall in the background
 

Fourth of July

We drove up to Philly Thursday evening. Despite leaving just after 8pm we encountered traffic delays. We also encountered children delays which led to 4 brief stops. Bohdin told us he needed to pee while we were in line waiting to pay the toll. There really isn't a much worse time to have to pee since we can't pull over. We debated just taking him out of his seat and having him pee in the potty in the car. Since there were only about 5 cars in front of us we decided to wait until getting through the toll when we could stop the car. Bohdin didn't make it. It was an easy and quick cleanup.

Nyla woke up as soon as I parked the car and had a hard time going back to sleep. Bohdin basically slept through the transfer from car to bed. We tried to get an early start on the day. Independence Hall requires free timed tour tickets every day of the year except July 4th so we wanted to get there early before the rush started. I looked at their online reservation ticket system and they had no tickets available through July of 2009 so either the system is broken or tickets are hard to come by. It was kind of fun to see it on July 4th anyway. The hall is actually the Pennsylvania state house so we've now seen 2 colonial state houses. Buddy said he was distracted and didn't hear much of the tour guide's speech. That's the problem with traveling with 2 small children. It was a short tour and we saw the courtroom side and the room where the delagates argued over the wording of the Declaration of Independence and other things. I thought it was neat to see.

The Liberty Bell is in a building across the street. There are signs outside saying there are no public restrooms in the building so of course Bohdin needed one when we went inside. After the previous night's accident we weren't pushing our luck much and took a quick photo as we rushed out of there and to the bathroom. We made it in time but we ran by the front row of chairs that were set up to listen to the mayor speak. Hopefully we didn't bother anyone too much. In the picture below you can see Independence Hall in the background. We didn't want to wait in line to see the bell again. It's just a poorly made bell anyway.

Later that day we went to the ice cream festival. It was a fundraiser for pediatric leukemia and many local ice cream places were involved. They set out samples of ice cream and the local favorite of water ice. Bohdin stuck to the water ice.

 
 
 

After nap time we headed out for dinner at a bar. Bars that serve food are common around here. Buddy really enjoyed his beer and meal. I had a burger and really good fries. Buddy was drenched in ice water that Bohdin accidently spilled on him. When we went outside it had started drizzling. The plan was to go to the Philadelhia Art Museum by bus to catch the concert and fireworks show. Buddy wouldn't believe me that the fireworks were going to start late. We missed our original bus stop and assumed we would see another but never did. We decided to just go back to the hotel and regroup. We ended up just staying in. The fireworks didn't start until 10:45 and it drizzled the whole evening. There is another fireworks show tonight. It's earlier and within walking distance so we'll try for that one.
 

Finger Licking Good

I haven't written much recently because with Buddy and his mom here I've spent much less time with the kids. I haven't played with them as much or read hardly any books. Now that Nana is gone it's just the 3 of us again. Buddy works long hours so we don't see him much. We ate dinner last night 2.5 hours before he came home. For dinner we took out a lasagna that Buddy had made a while ago. It was a recipe from America's Test Kitchen and I thought it came out pretty well. Nyla thought it was excellent and couldn't get enough. She even licked her fingers afterwards. That's high praise.

Below is also a picture of Bohdin as a mail carrier. He wanted to play again last night. I think my purse actually looks good on him. I should make myself a new purse and he can keep that one.

 
 

Bohdin is currently in love with a video we ckecked out from the library called "Meet the Shapes". It's a strange video because of the narration. Here is an example: "Circle. Circle. Circle. Circle. Circle. Circle." It goes on and on. It must be crack for the preschool set because he can't get enough. He did recognize that the gazebo was an octogon yesterday though so I suppose it's educational.

Someone put up a poll on a forum I frequent asking what do you consider walking distance. I chose one mile for a one way trip so about two to three miles total would be my personal limit for walking to the grocery store or the playground or whatever. The majority of people chose the same response although 20% chose a further distance. (10% chose .5 mile) Somebody commented that she generally bikes everywhere with her 2 children since pretty much everything they need is in 5 mile radius. We had about the same situation back in Broomfield but here everything is further. We decided against getting a bike trailer because we really can't use it here. The general area is not biking friendly. I can't bike to Target, Walmart or even the grocery store. It's just not set up for that here. We have to drive pretty much everywhere.