no, me do!

Kaden's favorite phrase. It reminds me of Leah when she was this age. I remember getting the day-care newsletter and it mentioned how Leah was learning new words all the time but "No, No!" was still her favorite thing to say.


Little Man is now Mr. Independent.


For example, last night I was folding laundry and Cody was helping. Mr. Independent decided that he wanted to fold some socks. He kept putting them all the way on his hand, then trying to pull them off, then trying to roll them together ... and his little fingers just wouldn't cooperate, so I tried to help ... Jennie, did you hear his screams of frustration at your house? Because I'm pretty sure that he roused some of our neighbors from their comfortable recliners to go to the window and see what the fuss was about at the Russell house!


Whether it's getting dressed or brushing his teeth or changing his diaper, back away with your helping hands - he wants to do it himself!


Leah is still honing her independence skills, too. Her primary focus is on clothing choice at the moment. She's disappointed daily because her friend at school, Casey, doesn't share the same sense of fashion. "Casey didn't like my shirt today." "Casey didn't like my pants today." "Casey didn't like ..." you get the drift. I find that while her choices are not always pleasing to my sense of aesthetics, as long as the clothing is appropriate for the weather of the day, it's not worth my time to argue. Orange and black striped leggings with a blue shirt and Christmas socks is definitely ok in the world of a 3 year old.



Notice today's selection - red pants with a purple shirt and a blue tie-dyed headband. Not too bad, given the possibilities. And I think it looks rather nice with Kaden's decision to don socks with his Spiderman sandals.

waiting for godot

Ok, so he's not Waiting for Godot, but while trying to come up with a title for the post, I was reminded of reading that play in a French Lit class during my undergraduate days. Little Man is, in fact, simply waiting for Papaw & Totsie to arrive for dinner. And, unlike Godot, they did put in an appearance. Notice that even though the front door is open so he could watch at the glass door, he insisted on having the blinds up so he could get a better view.

a lovely weekend

despite the predictions of the local meteorologists.

Friday all of the kids were at day-care, which was a huge thrill for Hannah. Picked the kids up and right after we got home, Totsie dropped by ... since none of us had eaten, we hit Pizza Hut for a fun dinner. Leah was allowed to sleep in Hannah's room Friday night, a nice treat for her.

Even better is the tale of Saturday morning ... Kaden came in to my room around 7:00 (Mike was already gone for work). He snuggled right up and went back to sleep. I woke up to the sounds of Leah, Hannah, and Cody playing, but they were being very quiet and getting along well, so I dozed in and out for another hour before Leah came to request breakfast. Went to ProAlterations with Totsie (thanks for the help! There's simply no way I could try on two pairs of pants and two dresses with the kids around - not unless I wanted them to tear up her shop!). I'm VERY excited to get my fancy new dress back - it's a gift from the most fabulous sister ever and I'll be wearing it to a wedding at the end of the month. To my parents house in the evening for a cook out and the kids had a blast playing outside, then Leah & Kaden got to spend the night with Papaw & Totsie.

Thought I might get to sleep in on Sunday, since the little ones were gone, but woke up to H&C's whispered voices outside my door. "You tell her. " "No, you tell her. I don't want to get in trouble." "You did it first, you tell." WHAT?!? Clogged toilet. Fun way to start your morning, eh? That put me in a bit of a funk, I'll admit. Went to get L&K and came back to find I'd missed a message from Jennie - were we going to the March for Babies? Oh, geez! I'll own up to this - I really wanted to back out. Not because I didn't want to spend time with Jennie and Ryan, but because I was not sure how the kids would fare on a lengthy walk. And it was rather chilly outside with the wind ... and they kept saying it was supposed to rain before the weekend was over .... What else will I do with the day? Stay inside with them all and tear my hair out or have a nervous breakdown .... So we went.

And had a blast. Jennie packed a WONDERFUL picnic lunch for all of us. The weather was actually very nice, and the scenery was lovely. Leah lost her purple sunglasses at some point on the ride (never did see them) and cried for a bit but otherwise traveled well in the stroller. Kaden tolerated Leah kicking the back of his seat very well, too. And H&C took turns with Cody's Spiderman scooter and still had energy to spare at the end. So, thank you Jennie, for inviting us out. My hair appreciates it!

Went home and tried to get a nap in (didn't work as well as I had hoped) and then loaded the kids back in the car to go watch Mike play softball. The kids really like to watch dad play and it was once again nice to be outdoors. Home for a late dinner and then to bed. Back to the grind this morning!

he likes ketchup

and having his toenails paintedand playing in our storage containers
and playing dress up

I love this Little Man. He is the bright spot in my days.

Mama Mondays: Kids Music

Erin's topic for this Monday is Kids Music. We LOVE music. Any kind. We'll turn on the DirectTv and listen to some of the radio stations - the kids enjoy bopping along to the 50s and 60s music in particular. Others that we really enjoy:

1. Laurie Berkner. I agree with Erin completely on this. The kids favorite is Whaddaya Think Of That?.

2. Raffi. Again, agreeing with Erin. Raffi is a must. We've got several Raffi CDs and a video with several of his concerts on it. Always a hit.

3. Mary Had A Little Amp. This is a wonderful compilation CD of kids tunes sung by my kind of artists. The kids really enjoy rocking out to this one.

4. Marlo Thomas and Friends Thanks & Giving All Year Long. Fun songs and stories by, again, my kind of artists.

Our oldest (8) enjoys listening to Hannah Montana and High School Musical. Leah (3.5) is currently really enjoying the Chipmunks soundtrack. I'm not a huge fan of that one, but I figure it could be worse. And we currently have Elmo Makes Music in the CD player, reliving our afternoon of Sesame Street Live glory.

I'll also add that we listen to "my" music, too. I'm a big fan of female artists (Tori Amos is a big favorite) and the kids are very willing to listen to all of that. I think it's important to expose them to a variety of musical styles and see what tastes they develop ....

earthquake

http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/04/18/illinois.earthquake/index.html

Did we feel it? If your "we" means me, Mike, Leah, Kaden, or Cody, the answer is no. Little Miss Hannah was the only one who felt it. She woke up crying ... "Daddy, I'm scared!" Mike got out of bed, walked to her room, and asked her what was wrong. "I'm scared ... the house is shaking!" Hannah, the house isn't shaking, everything is fine, go back to bed.

As Hannah walked to the bus stop this morning, my mom called "Did you feel that earthquake this morning?" Um, What?!?

Needless to say, Mike & I felt a little sheepish for not taking Hannah's concern a little more seriously. We were able to catch her before she got on the bus and tell her that she was right.

And I did feel the after-shock at work around 11:15 ... which makes me even more curious to know how I slept through the first one!

Mama Mondays: Rainy Day Activities

Jennie sent me to Erin's blog some time ago, and I check it fairly often. Erin has started a new "Mama" topic every Monday. Here are some my thoughts (a day late, in typical Jenni fashion!) on the topic of activities for those days when you can't get the kids outside.

This is something that I have struggled with since Hannah & Cody came to live with us last summer. Indiana winter can be very unfriendly, and with Mike working every other weekend, I've been left to my own devices from sun-up to sun-down with kids of ages 8, 7, 3.5, and 2. And some weekends are better than others. Leah has been asking endlessly about going back to Florida. And I had GREAT intentions for Sunday: we were going to make decorations (sun, palm trees, etc.), get out our beach towels, put on our bathing suits, and "go to Florida." Unfortunately for the kids, mom was in a funk on Sunday. Our imaginary flight was cancelled like so many real ones, and we've rebooked for this Sunday. I'll let you know how it turns out.

As for some of the activities that we've done in the past:

• Paper bag puppets. We've used brown paper bags and white ones. Get out the crayons, markers, construction paper ... you name it, let the kids decorate them, and then craft a puppet show. In another twist to this, you can make your own shape puppets (we did fish) - add some popsicle sticks and brads - and you've got some moving parts. For us, talking fish.




• Paper chains. (A great use for all of the decorative scrapbook paper I have that is wasting away in my cabinet.) The last time we did this project, it was orchestrated by my sister. I tell you, they crafted a MAMMOTH paper chain. We hung it in the hallway (strung from side-to-side the whole length of the hall) for decoration. "It looks like a party." Indeed. So we cranked up some music, grabbed some flashlights, and had a dance party in the hallway.



• Yarn pom-poms. Something for the older kids, but the little ones enjoy playing with them after they're made. This is just one of the activities I got from a great book Crafting with Kids by Catherine Woram.



• Baking. Baking cookies, brownies, cakes, anything. Baking is an activity that I find very relaxing, and the kids LOVE it. Everyone has their own apron and chef's hat, we take turns measuring and pouring and mixing, and we all get to enjoy the results. We also like to make surprise "Chef Runs" where we load up our freshly baked goodies in the car and drive them to Papaw & Totsie's to share.



• Coloring. Sounds too basic to list, but this is an activity that my kids NEVER tire of. Coloring books are nice, but they'll draw on any scrap of paper they can find. When I need a breather, out come the "colors" and paper.



• Yoga. Ok, ok, sounds weird. But it's a nice calming activity (which helps center mom and get her ready for the next round of activity) and the kids really seem to enjoy it. We've only done it a couple of times, so I don't have too much to say about it, but they really liked trying Tree pose.

That's all I can think of for now. Found some new things on Erin's blog that we'll try - edible play-dough may be our next new activity ....

indiana weather

Sunny and enjoyable yesterday. Grilling hamburgers, eating corn on the cob, swinging ....

Running to your car because of cold cold rain today.

Ick.

Please reference this post, http://jklmrussell.blogspot.com/2008/02/little-slice-of-heaven.html
and riddle me this .... Why don't we live in Florida?

In other news, looks like Mike might be making another batch of pepperoni bread (haven't told him that yet) and I'm hoping to move the yard sale up into mid-May, meaning Mike will staff it himself (he doesn't know that yet, either).

summertime blues

It's been on our mind for several months now ... what will we do with H&C when school is out? Well, folks, that time is fast approaching. And I'm not much further in terms of answers. We've talked to our day-care and they've offered us a very nice discount for H&C to go full time. I finally took the time to crunch the numbers ... after factoring in the extra discount for having so many children in their care, we would be paying $81 more per week than we do right now. That's the price they're offering us for one of them full-time. Make sense? No, I didn't think so. If we deduct what we're paying now for Cody, add in the full-time rate for both H&C, and subtract out the new 10% discount, we're only up $81. Notice I said only. Um, excuse me, but if I had an extra $81 per week that was unaccounted for, there'd be less worries in my life.

So, what if they go 2 days one week and 3 the next - attending day-care on the days that Mike is off? The difference in cost is ...? $40 per month. WHAT? That's right. For $40 per month, they may as well go full-time and Mr. Mike can pick up some extra shifts.

And lest you think we haven't explored all options, it looks to be cheaper than enrolling them in art programs, and we've not found a home based sitter that offers any better rates. We want to be clear - we're VERY satisfied with the services at Alice's, and my preference is for H&C to be there this summer. They do lots of structured but fun activities. The very worst option, in my opinion, is having Mike switch back to nights and have H&C at home. All day. Every day. For an entire summer. Lord help us!

I'm definitely open to suggestions. Mike has made a large batch of pepperoni bread that he is offering to friends and family for a $4 donation per loaf (size is approximately 9") - consider it a donation to my sanity ;-) We're planning a big yard sale for mid-June, and we've got a lead on someone to purchase the rest of our shingles. Anything I'm missing?

what a weekend!

Very busy weekend for me. I worked on Saturday and spent Sunday helping my friend Karen take pictures of her dad's steins. The picture taking might not sound like a lot of work, but we took over 250 pictures in about 6 hours worth of time .... I got home and the kids were chomping at the bit to get outside and continue enjoying the day. Cody got to use his new Spiderman scooter, Leah was trying to learn how to jump rope, Kaden was throwing balls, and Hannah was into all of the above. We had a ride-by from Jennie, Tony, & Ryan, and then we were off to Papaw & Totsie's house. Had a nice dinner (even nicer since I didn't have to cook!) and then the kids got more time outside. Whew, they sure needed that!

I've got spring fever, for sure! I'm ready to leave work and start cleaning the yard, cleaning out the shed, organizing for our summer yard sale, cleaning the kids rooms, weeding through their toys ... you name it, I'm ready!! Now if I could just get every one else in my house into the same kind of excitement over these projects ... any suggestions?

*Addendum - I almost forgot to shout my excitement on two fronts:
1. Reunion of New Kids On The Block. Every time I think of it, I get a song in my head. Jennie & Angie, I except us to attend when they tour!
2. Super Mario 2. Yup, that's right. I'm all about old-school, if you can't tell from #1. Lindsay got Mario 2 for the Wii at my parents, and had some FUN last night.

my little man

I know I say this a lot, but I cannot believe how fast my kids are growing. Kaden in particular. I suppose that's probably true for any youngest child ... it just seems like they grow even faster than the first. With all the hubbub in our home, I feel like I'm missing out on some of the little moments that I got to revel in with Leah. So this week, while Mike took H&C to art camp and Leah was enjoying some Totsie time, I took a nice, slow morning with Mr. Man. We slept in a little bit and had some snuggle time. And then we went to Starbucks for breakfast before I dropped him off at school.

Handsome little thing, isn't he?

A woman came in and sat down at a table next to us, and Kaden climbed out of his chair and started peeking around the edge at her. She played right into this Peek-A-Boo game and they both had a great time. As Kaden continued the game, she looked at Kaden with a beautiful smile and said "My little boy is 7 now. He doesn't peek at me any more."

Enjoy the little things.

wicked stepmothers ...

I had a wonderful dinner with Jennie & Angie last night as a celebration of Jennie's birthday today. It was SO nice to get out and enjoy each other's company without worrying about where the kids were and whether or not someone was hitting/screaming/biting/etc. We did discuss some of our mothering challenges, and they both mentioned having read this article: http://www.cnn.com/2008/LIVING/personal/04/01/stepmother.never.say/index.html?imw=Y&iref=mpstoryemail. I had apparently not been browsing the same websites and had not seen it. (Thanks, Jen, for sending me the link.) After reviewing it, it would seem to me that I'm following most all of the rules. Pat on the back for myself and hope I don't dissolve into the wicket stepmother trap ....