GooGoo

Watching a movie together

Buddy took Bohdin and Nyla to the movies on Sunday to see KungFu Panda 2. They had seen the first one earlier in the week when I recorded it. Bohdin really liked it and Nyla sort of liked it. They both said they liked seeing the sequel in the theater. They so rarely see anything in the theater that I guess it is a real treat for them.

Buddy was busy working over the Memorial Day weekend on the house. He insulated a lot of the new kitchen and did some more tile in the basement. That insulation was sorely needed because temperatures skyrocketed into the mid 90s. The insulation blocked all of the holes to the outdoors. That room feels a lot more comfortable now.



Cora's teeth have been working hard to break through the gums and I think two more finally have. She has been pretty miserable the past few days and having a lot of trouble sleeping. Several times she woke up in the middle of the night crying. She has also been having a really difficult time going to sleep. I have had to put her in the sling a lot lately which is unusual. Normally she just falls asleep nursing for me.

Cora has developed an affinity for one of Nyla's baby dolls. Her preference is for the one she is holding in the picture below. Nyla had zero interest in that doll recently until Cora liked it. Now they share it. Nyla has named the baby GooGoo. The baby Nyla is holding is named Pizza. Several months ago when Nana was here Nyla named something (a doll or Playmobil person) Sarah. I had doubts that Nyla chose the name because that was such an unusual choice for Nyla. She prefers nontraditional names like the ones above or Dancing Princess, Chicken Boat, and Swimming Girl.



Bohdin picked some lettuce for dinner last night and there were a lot of bugs on it. I had to go carefully over each leaf to get rid of all of them. I made a lemon dill dressing for it and I joked that we were having salad with a lemon dill and bug vinaigrette. Bohdin said he hoped he wasn't having that. I'm not certain if he did try any. He may have been full though from all of the peas he ate outside before picking the lettuce. He has also been hogging all of the raspberries. I've only had two so far.

First Fall

Cora has been fascinated with the stairs all week and it was only a matter of time before she fell.  Yesterday morning I was in the kitchen making breakfast and cleaning up.  Bohdin, Nyla, and Cora were in the living room playing.  At first Nyla would block off Cora's progress to the stairs which Cora thought was a fun game.  Then Nyla became distracted playing something else.  I heard Nyla calling for help.  She had discovered Cora at the top of the steps and was stopping her from coming back down.  I brought Cora down and blocked off the entrance to the stairs.  Bohdin and Nyla pulled out a board game while Cora piddled around.  I went back into the kitchen.  A few minutes later I hear a loud thump and a cry.  Cora had found a small entrance at the side of the banister and probably climbed the stairs and tried climbing back down before falling.  I found her face first at the bottom.  She was okay but wanted to stay close the rest of the morning.  In the afternoon she didn't like that Bohdin had blocked off her side entrance.  She tried for several minutes to find a way to get through but couldn't.  I was hoping she had learned a lesson but apparently not.  The stairs will just have to stay blocked for the foreseeable future. 

Nyla loves corn on the cob and every time we go to the grocery store together we come home with fresh corn if it is available.  Bohdin has always been my helper in taking off the husks but Nyla doesn't like to be left out so she helps also.  She was having trouble with it the other day because she likes to do so much at one time.  I told her I would help her in a minute.  I look over a minute later and she has it done.  She told me that she never gives up.  I already knew that.

We're continuing our strawberry adventure.  Buddy said I ought to write about it.  Last night we had strawberry lemonade again.  It was a big hit the last time.  Even though I have to pay two dollars for all of the lemons it does taste like a special drink.  We mixed it with a scoop of strawberry granita and mineral water for carbonation.  We also had vanilla ice cream with strawberry sauce, strawberries, chocolate, and whipped cream which was yummy.  Bohdin liked the strawberry sauce but not the strawberries.  Nyla refused anything made with strawberries.  The strawberry bread I made earlier in the week was good.  The kids didn't like it but Buddy and I did. 

Bohdin helped me make the first batch of lemonade by zesting the lemons and cutting them in half.  While he was cutting one of the lemons he cut his finger.  Yesterday when we were making it again he wanted to help and do it all again.  He said he would be more careful this time and he was. 

I saw rhubarb at the grocery store last night and thought I would pick some up because I thought I could use it somehow with all of the strawberries.  Cora grabbed a stalk out of the bag and started munching on it.  She was really mad when I took it away to pay for it.  I gave it right back and she continued to chew on it.  By the time we were home it hardly looked like rhubarb anymore. 

Ticks

Cora had her 9 month checkup yesterday. I called weeks ago to get an appointment but they couldn't get me one until the end of the month. Then they called and changed my appointment time without even asking. I called to change it just on principle and was able to get a sooner appointment without a problem. My favorite pediatrician is being deployed so we had to see somebody else. He was worried about Cora's lack of verbal skills. He suggested that Bohdin and Nyla should stop getting her things she points to and make her say it instead. Cora has never pointed at anything in her life. I'm not concerned about her verbal skills at all. She says lots of stuff just not the right stuff for this doctor apparently. Cora doesn't really ask for anything verbally either. If she wants something she just gets it. She's not one to sit around and wait for things to come to her. That's not quite true. She can be incredibly patient (or perhaps stubborn) when waiting to eat or sleep. I think those are the two exceptions.

Cora has become fascinated by the stairs. She has climbed them several times and wants to go down them as well. We've taught her how to safely get off the bed and how to go down the one step from Bohdin's room. She does well with it but we don't trust her yet. I don't know why. She gets off the bed fine by herself but we always reach out anxiously to be nearby just in case. The problem with her going down the stairs is that she has no clue about sitting too close to an edge. She has fallen off the bed that way and would likely do the same thing on the stairs. In the meantime she thinks it is a fun game to crawl quickly toward the stairs with me chasing her. She even looks back to make sure I am coming. I do not think it is a fun game but it makes her giggle.



Not in the mood for picture taking.



We had one day without rain but more in the forecast so we went outside to keep working on the garden. Bohdin has been pushing me to plant seeds for days but wasn't interested yesterday. He was out there for just a few minutes before going inside. The rest of us made a little bit of progress. Cora has learned how to escape the trellis run and happily steps on pea plants and pulls up lettuce. She finally stayed still for a while when chewing on the handle of a shovel. Nyla woke up really early yesterday so we came in earlier than I hoped. Nyla, Cora, and I took a quick bath. I think I had a tick on me but didn't pay too much attention. It may have been a stubborn spot of dirt. I found a dead tick on the bathtub ledge. When I was drying Cora off she had her first tick bite. I checked Bohdin and Nyla just in case and Bohdin had a tick bite on the middle of his back. The ticks are so bad this year. I've had three bites so far. Bohdin, Nyla, and Cora have all had one. We are going to start using insect repellent every time we go outside. Our lazy chicks aren't helping at all yet.

Fishing

Saturday morning was the neighborhood fishing derby. Buddy took Bohdin and Nyla while I stayed at home with a sleeping Cora. Nyla caught one fish and I think Bohdin caught two. Neither caught enough to win a trophy. Buddy says that they were bored. They may have had more fun getting ready to go fishing. Bohdin liked practicing casting.




The ground may never be as dry as we like for planting so we did as much as we could this weekend which was quite a lot. Buddy tilled a huge section and prepared it for Bohdin and I to plant. We only have a few things left which we may try to do today if the ground dried up at least a little bit after last night's strong storm. Cora has Buddy's skin coloring and is sensitive to the sun. The back of her neck became a little red on Saturday so on Sunday we traded off going outside so she could remain indoors. Cora is very strongly anti-hat so we just need to be extra careful with her and break out the sunscreen for her. She is also anti-shade and will crawl back out into the sunlight.

I picked strawberries until I was hot and tired Sunday without making a huge dent. It was many pounds of strawberries. For dinner I made strawberry shortcakes because the recipe calls for eight cups of strawberries and we certainly had that. When Buddy came down he saw a biscuit topped with strawberries and whipped cream. He commented on it because he was expecting angel food cook and was skeptical about a biscuit. Then he took a bite. The next thing out of his mouth was "Mmm. Delicious." It really was delicious. It will be our spring treat while we are in this house. I also made strawberry lemonade and strawberry puree. Next up on the list is strawberry jam. Buddy wanted me to make strawberry cobbler but that was before we had the strawberry shortcake. Those were so good it would be a shame to not eat it every night we have fresh strawberries.



Cora, like most babies, doesn't care for baby toys. She has recently shown an interest in George and one of Nyla's babies. Nyla has been gracious enough to share George with her but wants to get Cora her own George for her birthday. Cora's other favorites are cardboard, toothbrushes and cell phones. Nyla had flown some Playmobil people up in the airplane so they could go to Colorado. The Cora monster attacked them and I found a kid sticking out of her mouth.

Presentation

Yesterday was project presentation time for the homeschool group.  This month's topic was geography.  Bohdin chose China while Nyla chose Russia.  She chose Russia because it was the only country she knew besides China.  I wish we had spent more time preparing but we basically waited until the last day to get it done.  Sort of.  Last August after studying China I made Bohdin tell me things about China.  I wrote them down and was able to pull the list back out.  I think he used some of it for his report.   Buddy helped Bohdin to put it together so I'm not certain.

For Nyla I just read her a book and she pulled out the parts that she thought were interesting.  She liked the reindeer, tigers, ballerinas, princesses, and longest railroad.  I drew pictures of these things on a piece of paper to help her remember during her presentation.  Nyla was very excited to do it.  Unfortunately it was very difficult to hear her and I am probably the only one who heard anything since I was the closest.  Nyla didn't use her normal loud voice and spoke rather quietly instead.  I could have helped her do better but the previous person had been really really long (Bohdin and Nyla's favorite though) and I wanted something short afterward.  Plus Cora was tired.  I wish I had told her to repeat it or asked questions. 

Bohdin wanted to go last and he did.  When it was his turn he walked to the front and turned his back to the audience to take some deep breaths.  He said he needed some time.  There was one family who had been there before so they knew what to expect from him.  At one point one of the girls thought about chanting "you can do it" but I'm glad she didn't.  I don't think it would have helped.  Bohdin read through his report quietly before I turned him around to begin.  He hesitated a little in the beginning but then did really well for a Bohdin.  He didn't seem panicked at all like last time.  He was easy to understand and I think he showed remarkable progress from last time.  He felt at ease answering questions.  I was really proud of how well he did. 

We are drowning in strawberries right now and I have busy dealing with them plus all of the other yard work to be done now.  Yesterday I picked as many strawberries as I could before Cora became fussy.  I weighed them later.  I put almost 4.5 pounds of sliced strawberries in the freezer.  I threw away almost 2 pounds of waste and I made more than 3 dozen chocolate covered strawberries.  Later I went out and picked a bag of strawberries for the neighbor.  I did not pick every ripe strawberry out there and will be able to pick many pounds of strawberries again tomorrow. 

First Steps

Buddy finally saw Cora take a few steps when she had a six step run. He declares her a walker but I disagree. We had the same disagreement with Nyla. As far as I know six steps was her best so far. She can't be enticed to walk and often does it when nobody is watching. Bohdin and especially Nyla still call out in amazement when she just stands. She's heard the word amazing so many times in the past week.




After last weeks run of way above average temperatures we have swung in the opposite direction with temperatures well below normal. It still won't stop raining so we have had trouble getting our garden started. I finally planted a few tomatoes yesterday but Cora was making it difficult. She pulled the leaves off the plants, bent one in half, stepped on another, and kept using me as a handhold. I told Bohdin to watch her and he came up with a Cora jail. I was on one side of the trellis and she was on the other. It worked for quite some time. When it was time to pick strawberries, Cora joined us and picked a few. She's not supposed to be eating strawberries yet but she did anyway.




I forgot to pull out some whole beans for Cora last night before mashing them. It ended in a huge mess.



Paul and Jenn sent the kids some books this morning and they looked through them this morning while I was cleaning. I also had a new cd on. I've been checking out cds from the library for several months which the kids have enjoyed. The selection is limited so I downloaded a few last night. I can hear Bohdin singing under his breath in the car. Luckily there are some really great artists out there for kids now.




When Bohdin finishes listening to an audio book I let him watch the movie if one is available. He loved watching Mary Poppins a few weeks ago and is in love with Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory this week. He has watched the older version at least 6 times now. I haven't checked out the newer version yet.

Strawberries

It has been a busy few days here. Thursday afternoon we met up with the boy, J-, we had met at playgroup on Tuesday. They had a really good time together. It was quite hot that day and they had the water feature turned on. Bohdin came home soaked. Nyla didn't really want or know how to play with the two boys so she stayed near me a lot of the time. She was sad there wasn't anybody for her. After the playground we came home for Bohdin to change and had just a few minutes before leaving for soccer. This session is much smaller with only five kids in it. Four of them including Bohdin were in the last session together. Because of that they are moving along in the skills and focusing on passing and teamwork. The coach told them to split up into pairs and one of the boys called out to Bohdin. Nyla heard him call Bohdin name repeatedly and started crying because none of them knew her name. That was the second time that day she felt left out. I was glad for Bohdin though.

After practice we came home and picked strawberries. It's our first big haul of the season. We are going to have a lot of strawberries so I'm going to busy for the next several weeks processing them somehow. We're also trying to get our garden started but the weather has not been cooperative. The time that we have free it always seems to be raining. We are so behind. I'm determined to get everything planted this week but with a forecast of rain for the next three days that won't be easy. Buddy is having trouble tilling the wet soil so it's not even ready for us to plant yet.




Saturday was the neighborhood yard sale. With a forecast of rain I didn't want to waste time prepping stuff. Saturday morning was overcast but not raining yet. We threw a few items out there. It was good to get rid of some stuff. The old refrigerator is gone as well as an old vanity and some baby stuff. Bohdin made $11.50 selling strawberries and strawberry plants. It wasn't something we had planned. That was really our big money maker though so we'll do it again next spring when we will have even more strawberries.

Cora has tooth #4 coming in. It is her top front left. It's coming in quite fast and has caught up to the one next to it. Cora has also been working on taking some steps I think. She stands a lot now in the middle of the room and a few times I think I've seen her take a step. I'm not certain though because it is always out of the corner of my eye. This morning I was cleaning up the kitchen with Nyla and Cora nearby. Cora was standing near Nyla who was holding George. Cora likes George and reached out to grab it. I'm pretty sure I saw her take a step but I was loading the dishwasher at the time and she only had my partial attention. There have been several instances like that.

We had a money drawer in the house in case we needed cash for whatever reason. There was more money than usual in it because of the yard sale and Derby money. Bohdin emptied the drawer and added it to his money bag. I found out and he tried to give it back but it was too late. The money had been mixed. I had no idea how much he had so I took some and gave him back my best guess of what he had. It may have been more but more likely it was less. He cried and cried over this. He has been saving for a really long time for that Playmobil train and to go backward must be devastating. He said he did it because he wanted the train. It's something he has wanted for years and has been actively saving his money for six months. That is a long time for a little boy. Unfortunately his method of accelerating the timeline was wrong.