beluga

This is another of Amelia's picture editing experiments. We do have to watch out, Picasa is easy to use, which means she can easily click-and-drag pictures out of order and into other folders (I'm guessing the last, I don't know how else she would have done it...). Maybe we'll have to give her her own computer to mess up, or make sure that everything is backed-up (teach her how to back-up and that could be one of her chores...) or, just maybe, wean her off computers, at least until she can read the warning messages!

Burke is not walking yet, that will be soon enough and once he starts I think there'll be no stopping him. I'm glad it'll be spring and we'll just go outside as much as possible. He imitates actions much more than I ever remember Mia doing at this point, I don't know if that's because I just don't remember or if he has an interesting older sister to imitate. Today, he tried to feed me when Mia and I were doing some serious cooking (Chocolate pie, chocolate mousse, soup and two loaves of bread, the first one burnt in the oven, all in under 30 minutes. Sure, they looked like building blocks, but oh, the taste!)

Grandma!

We had a nice time at the Aquarium with Grandma, who is visiting until Sunday.

Cupcakes

We made some cupcakes for Mia to have her candles in.

Happpy 3rd Birthday, little girl!

Happy First, little boy!

potty trained

(Does it count if she just sits on the pot for a long, long, long time until something happens? sometimes more than once in the same sitting?) (She won't get off sometimes.) (I am counting it, because she only uses the toilet now.) Yay! One down, one to go.

Firsts

Amelia had her first full potty-trained day today. No accidents. We started training a week ago Tuesday, when we went out and bought a 12-pack of underwear and just put them on during the day and changed them as we needed to. The first 5 days, we had one 'success' per day, then two and three, yesterday was three for five. Also two days ago she asked to go one or two of the times. Today she asked for some of the times, I suggested twice and then, to my surprise, the last two times she just toddled off and did it all herself. This last situation might be hard to do, I'm not sure how to make the toilet accessible to her and not for Burke. Today he had a cold and fever and so I was holding him all day and left the gate open to Mia's potty. We'll figure something out, the hard part's pretty much done now I'd say. She started dressing herself out of the blue one day about three weeks ago, so that was part of the timing. It's much easier to pull pants up over panties than a diaper.

Also, Burke and Mia had their first fight. And not in a "this baby's in my way" way either. Usually they play well together, they don't often need each other's toys, and if Burke's trying to grab something of Mia's, I;ll intervene and tell him that it's Mia's turn and that he can have a turn when she's done, then give him something else or take him away, depending on the situation. Usually Mia ends up giving it to him 30 seconds after. I actually rarely have to do this anymore. Anyway, the other night in the tub, I went into our bedroom for a moment. All of a sudden, Mia was yelling "I want it, I want it, I WANT IT!" and Burke was doing his particular p*%$$ed off cry/yell (he's mostly good humoured, but he does have a bit of a quick temper). I came back in to see that Amelia had the toy that Burke had just been playing with in one hand trying to hold it away from him and he was holding on hard to, and scrabbling at, her other arm. It was red where he'd been squeezing. It was really very funny.

Here's the picture

Mia and Mommy

On the beach, picture as edited by Mia. This is one of her favourite things to do now. She used to look at the pictures and then she figured out how to play with them all by herself.

"For Grandpa, but grandma can share it too"

Mia didn't say that these were anything in particular, so I guess I'll call them toddler abstract. The only things she did say were that the series of dots in the bottom form were blocks all lined up and that the dots in the donut in the top form were decorations.

Wouldn't want to meet them in a dark alley...

Well, Amelia anyway. They spent a happy 15-20 minutes like this a few nights ago

Here comes trouble

happy ho-ho

Christmas tree

 

Pajama morning

 

Hello

I'm sorry for the lack of regular posting, it's just that, well, um, yeah. Sometimes during my day, I compose wonderful little stories to post, but by the time I get to the computer (which doesn't happen every day if Amelia doesn't nap. she doesn't nap all the time anymore, rather calls out to me, waking up Burke and getting my blood simmering) they're gone. So, here is Amelia asleep one night. She's been insisting on going to sleep in her crib for about 2 weeks now. She also has her afternoon quiet time in here. She is too long for it now, so I worry about her little scrunched up body and I move her to her big bed when I go to sleep.
And here is a slightly washed out picture of Burke doing his favourite activity; standing. He stands up anywhere he can, even the bathroom scale, 2 inches off the floor. Sometimes he just has his hands on the floor and his legs straight and tries to push his body up. He's always been about his legs, always pushing with them, even in the womb. 

Snow!

View from the front door
View of the backyard. 

yeah, right

Would you believe sick and sick & teething? We made it through the day, with the help of a great many tissues. Now it's Daddy's turn. For the next two days, I will be gone all day. I'm taking a doula training course! (A doula is a birth coach to help women (and their partners) through the whole labour and birth process). 

Turbidity, another word for muddy

Pineapple express-a tropical rain and wind storm. Very high water turbitity-boil water advisory. baby with a cold-plugged nose-wake up at 4:30.Same baby teething-top right tooth and the canines (again, and for real hopefully). Toddler with a cold-awake and ready for the day at 5:30. Spit-up (I thought we were over that). Diapers.

And all the coffee shops are closed-see water turbidity:

Wish me well.

Posted before 9 am.

May I vent a little?

Why do people think that it's cute or funny to ask little girls with big brown eyes if they can take them home, or if their mom would notice if they took her little brother away with them? And then they have the audacity to expect that little girl to give them a polite goodbye or even a hug? I wish I could think of a good snide comment to make in these situations, but these people are frequently people that we see on a semi-occasional basis and on whose goodwill in their job we rely on. Argh.