School's (Almost) Out!

The last week of June has finally arrived, and in two days Kyle will be a Kindergartener no more. This week has been full of dress-down days, hot dogs, and bouncy castles. It has also been completely void of homework.

As far as we know we'll still be in St. John's for the next school year, so Kyle will continue to spend his time with all of these nutters:

Bring on First Grade!

Retiring The Snow Log--For Now

Here it is, once again--the official record of snowfall for this past winter. I refuse to believe that we'll have any more snow. I REFUSE TO BELIEVE IT. Winter is done, so I'm taking the snow log out of the sidebar until next winter. I'm sure it'll snow tomorrow as punishment for such a reckless act, but I don't really care. It's not like the weather we've had so far has been much better than snow, with the exception of about three days over the last two months.

Winter '09/'10 Snow Log

November 11 - 1/2 in.
December 4 - 1/2 in.
December 6 - 12 in.
December 10 - 3 in.
December 11 - 2 in.
December 12 - 1 in.
December 17 - 2 in.
December 19 - 4 in.
December 28 - 1 in.
January 9 - 6 in.
January 17 - 4 in.
January 21 - 3 1/2 in.
January 30 - 3 in.
January 31 - 1 in.
February 4 - 1 in.
February 5 - 15 in.
February 6 - 6 in.
February 9 - 1 in.
February 10 - 1 in.
February 21 - 2 in.
March 12 - 2 in.
March 27 - 4in.
April 15 - 3in.

Total = 78 1/2 in.
Total Snow Day Count = 2

This is entirely approximate. I am not the weather service. My measurements are conducted from inside the house as I look out the window and estimate how much snow is piled on my back porch.

Good-bye, snow log. See you in October.

Heavy

It's official. I need to lose 10 pounds.

Brandon: "I like you bedroom, Mommy."
Me: "Really? You like my bedroom?"
Brandon: "Yes. I like to lay your bedroom."
Me: "Oh, you like to lay in my bedroom. Well, I like your bedroom, too."
Brandon: "Mommy! You no lay my bedroom! You too heavy!"
Me: "I'm too heavy for your bedroom?!"
Brandon: "Yes. That's so funny, Mommy."

If it's that funny I might just need to lose 15 or 20 pounds.

Superstar!

I should have guessed what we were in for when I woke up at 6:30 on Friday morning, walked into Natalie's room, and found her on the floor, lying on her belly, pushing up with her arms.

"Um, Sweetie... are you doing push-ups?" I asked, slightly puzzled.

"Yes! I'm getting ready for my show! It's going to be great!" she replied, as she bounced up onto her feet and clapped her little hands, an enormous grin on her face.

It was her last day of preschool and the day of the big end-of-year concert. Calling it a concert was a bit of a stretch, but I wasn't going to argue with a four-year-old. It was more like four songs and two nursery rhymes, but whatever. Natalie was excited, and thanks to her push-ups she was ready to perform!

Shaun and I couldn't wait to see our timid little girl stand up with her classmates and mumble a few cute little songs.

We were totally unprepared, however, for the little show-stealer Natalie turned out to be. She sang--loudly and in tune. She danced--with rhythm and hip action. She knew all the words, and projected her little voice across the roomful of amused parents. I've never heard sounds that loud come out of my child in public before. At home, yes. (I believe I've mentioned the iron fist with which Natalie rules her brothers.) But I had no idea she was a little actress in the making. She carried the show! And all Shaun and I could do was stare in amazement, occasionally turning to each other in bewilderment (Where on Earth did this come from? Where did she get the performance gene? Not from either of us!) before we had to turn back to the front of the room and gape at our four-year-old diva.

Natalie was also chosen to play the part of the spider in both 'Little Miss Muffett' and 'The Itsy Bitsy Spider', and I don't think I've seen many things cuter in my life.

I can't believe the school year is over, and I can't believe how Natalie has grown from the little girl with tears in her eyes on the first day to the superstar that I witnessed two days ago. I'm so proud of her! And, frankly, I'm awed that Shaun and I could make such a creature. Go figure.

I Love My Kindle

I know, I know. I've been neglecting my blog. But I have a good excuse. Well, maybe not a good excuse, but I do have an excuse.

I bought a Kindle. And it has taken over my life.

Do you know what happens when a bookaholic can buy new books with the push of a little button? Do you know what happens when suddenly any book that pops into your head can be in your hands in less than 30 seconds? Do you know what happens when you don't have to deal with the nightmare of dragging three kids to the bookstore (and more importantly, dragging them out of the bookstore)? Do you know what happens when you can carry around over 1,000 books at a time in your purse?

Your butt becomes permanently attached to your favorite spot on the couch, Kindle in hand, except for when you must be somewhere else. And even then, the Kindle is close by, in your handbag or sitting on the passenger seat of the car next to you. It's on the nightstand at night, and on the kitchen counter while you're making dinner.

Don't worry--I'm still cleaning the house and feeding the kids. I'm not becoming an episode of Hoarders in the making. I've even been busy over the last month. We've had dance recitals, book fairs, business trips, and parties. But my free time is reading time and not blogging time.

I hope to eventually recover from my Kindle infatuation, but for now I really hope I'm not forced to choose between my Kindle and, let's say, Kyle because I don't know who'd win.

Party Time!

We celebrated Natalie's fourth birthday with a party last weekend. On Sunday she invited friends from her preschool class and from our playgroup over to The Little Gym where they all ran crazy and played for an hour and a half. There were balls, bars, beams, and a parachute.

There was pizza. (I highly recommend The Little Gym for birthday parties if you're as lazy as I am, and the idea of twelve two-through-five-year-olds running around your house gives you hives. It's much more fun having a party when you know the cake, pizza, and lemonade all over the floor will be cleaned up by someone else.)

There was Barbie ballerina cake. This was chosen because Natalie loves Barbie, and she loves ballerinas, and she also loves as much pink and purple as possible on a cake.

At home there were presents and payback. Let's just say that Natalie wasn't nearly as nice about the help she was getting from Brandon as he was when she was being so helpful with his gifts a week earlier.

And what's that? Oh, that's just Natalie's brand new Nintendo DS. You know, the one her older brother convinced her she needed for her birthday.

And now I am done with the birthday parties until December!

Four Going on Fourteen

Every year my boys get a year older, and every year I'm amazed. Kyle's birthdays sneak up on me and make me feel old. Brandon's birthdays seem to come quickly, and they make me nostalgic.

Natalie's birthdays are an entirely different experience for me. We spend the entire four months between Kyle's birthday in December and Natalie's birthday in April counting down the days and discussing presents. By the time April 19th rolls around each year we've all been heavily prepared, and everyone is ready for it.

This year was no different. On Monday Natalie turned four, and I looked at her and said, "Happy Birthday, Baby! I can't believe you're four!" What she hears is, "Wow, you're such a big girl!" What I'm really saying is, "I can't believe you're only four."

Natalie is wise beyond her years, always one step of her brothers, and she doesn't miss a thing. She listens to and absorbs everything the adults around her say, files it away in her little head, and never lets on that she's listening. In public she's reserved, shy, quiet, and afraid to put herself in unfamiliar situations. At home she loves her brothers fiercely, but she rules them like a tyrant, and they willingly do her bidding from the time they wake up in the morning until they go to bed at night. What they don't do willingly she tricks them into doing.

She is definitely mine. My mother will agree, as will my brother and sister.

My little girl turned four on Monday, and I wasn't at all surprised by it. Of course she's four. Hasn't she been four forever?

Where goin'?

I had this conversation with Brandon yesterday while I was buckling him into his carseat.

Brandon: "Where goin'? Mommy? Where goin'?"
Me: "We're going to the grocery store. Then we're going to pick Nat up from school."
Brandon: "I wanna go Mom-mom an' Pop-pop's house. I wanna go Pop-pop's house, NOW!"
Me: "Oh, we can't go to Mom-mom and Pop-pop's house today. They live far, far away. We'd have to take an airplane to go there, and we have to go pick Natalie up soon."

Thirty seconds later, as we're driving down the street.

Brandon: "Where goin', Mommy?"
Me: "We're going to the grocery store, Brandon."
Brandon: "No gross store! I go air-port!"

I guess he knows he can find airplanes at the airport. Think he misses his Mom-mom and Pop-pop much?

Birthday Boy

For the first time in over five years I no longer have a child under the age of two in the house. Brandon's second birthday was yesterday, and I'm pretty sure that means I can't call him a baby any longer. My baby, yes. A baby, no. Not that he's acted much like a baby over the last year. This child can hold his own with a silly, impulsive five-year-old and a bossy, wily almost-four-year-old any day.

I'm the first one to admit that I'm lazy, so Brandon's second birthday was exactly like all the other second birthdays we've celebrated around here--a few presents and cake, attended by immediate family. I don't do parties for two-year-olds. As far as a two-year-old is concerned it is a party if they see cake, presents, and singing. Some days they think it's a party if they just see a dog in the backyard next door. Or if you tell them they're having pizza for lunch. Or if Dora comes on the television. You get my drift.

Here's the cake I made:

Brandon picked out the little sugar candies shaped like Lightning McQueen and Tow Mater. The red sugar sprinkles were all me.

Brandon wailed as we sang to him.

I'm not totally sure why that was since he perked right up after the singing stopped (the singing really couldn't have been that bad), and he blew out his candles like a pro.

He had an excellent time opening presents despite a large amount of help from his big sister.

And then we spent the rest of the day watching Brandon play with all of his new toys and try to keep them away from the vultures known by the names of Kyle, Natalie, and Ethan (Kyle's friend).

I really can't believe my littlest man is two. Life is easier for me now than it's ever been in my entire tenure as a mother. Now all we need to do is attempt some potty-training, and I should be home free. Hah.

Three Days in New York

Shaun and I spent three days in New York last week while my parents wrangled the kids, and we had an amazing time. I'm not saying you have to do what we did if you ever go to New York, but here's what you'd have to do if you grow up to be just like us.

Day 1:

Arrive at Newark Liberty International to torrential downpour and take train into NYC.

Check-in to an awesome room at The Plaza. Have lunch at Sarabeth's on Central Park South. Go see The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, a Swedish film subtitled in English and based on the novel of the same name.
Wander through Greenwich Village and catch a show at The Comedy Cellar, with headliners including Darrell Hammond, Jim Norton, and Nick Griffin.

Day 2:

Wake up whenever you want rather than to the sound of children banging on their bedroom doors or sneaking down the stairs.

Go shopping in SoHo.

Catch Ricky Gervais at a taping of The Late Show with David Letterman.

Have dinner in the the Theater District and take in Race on Broadway, starring James Spader, David Alan Grier, Kerry Washington, and Richard Thomas. Day 3:

Wake to some of the warmest temperatures and sunniest skies you've seen since September (you'd have to live in Newfoundland to accurately duplicate the joy at finding 60-degree temps at 9 AM).

Have some of the best french toast ever and a bellini at Balthazar in Soho. Do some more shopping for yourself and for the kids at Fresh and FAO Schwarz. Wander through Central Park and laze on a park bench in the sun. Do a little more shopping and have lunch at The Shops at Columbus Circle near Central Park.

Take the train from New York's Penn Station back to Newark Liberty International, and hope that your flight home isn't delayed in some fashion by the weather in St. John's. (It will be, but you don't know it yet.)

The End. (Until I'm ready to get into my most recent near-death experience at the hands of Continental Airlines and the St. John's International Airport. You're just going to have to wait for that part of the story.)