TWO!

Happy birthday, dear Maya!

Our wonderful girl is two and had a very good day.

The morning started a bit crazy. Maya woke up drenched and began her twos with a bath. Owen woke up, frankly, feeling a bit under attended and was a bit mischief-prone as he tried to shift the focus back to himself.

It was what it was.

That said, he was as good as gold tonight. He did a very nice job making his little sister feel special ... even though the silliness level was a bit higher than normal.

The following video pretty much tells the entire story.



Following the busy birthday celebration with family, today was actually very low key. Maya enjoyed the treats we brought for her friends at school, and she had some balloons this morning. Both sets of grandparents called tonight, and I got from school early, giving us a lot more time together.

And, of course, there were candles, cupcakes, and one "real mess!"

So happy birthday, Maya! We love you!

And just to ensure we end on a truly positive image, here's another little movie of Maya navigating the house in a new set of high heels she got from our friends the Merrills.



I think she does pretty good.

Birthday Party!

Maya was the belle of the ball this weekend as family gathered to celebrate her second birthday. The actual birthday isn't until this Thursday the 25th, but we had a grand time getting the birthday celebration started early.

There was cake and a wide variety of presents, including such hits as a big box of jewelery, a soccer ball, and a bike helmet. Owen performed his job as gift opening assistant with style, and everyone but Owen (there is apparently no rest for the gift opening assistant) even got the chance to take a nap on Saturday afternoon.

What birthday isn't improved by ample cuddle time?

The group even managed to squeeze a little birthday celebration for me into the mix. The biggest surprise for my April 5, 40th birthday was Amy's plan for a three-day getaway to Vegas for just the two of us in a couple of weeks. The hotel and the flights are booked, child care is arranged (thanks Grammie and Grampy) ... and I'll be picking out our shows this week.

All in all, it was a wonderful weekend.

I have a couple of movies to add before I end this post. The first is Maya showing off her ABC skills.

And here she is bearfooted ...

Happy Birthday, Maya!

The good news is the runny nose isn't runny any more.

Funny story.

It was beautiful out last night, so Amy, Owen, Maya, and I were outside after work/school, exploring the yard, digging through the garden, and the like.

Amy and Maya were still out back when I went in to get dinner ready. Maya came in a few minutes later coughing and choking a little like something was caught in the back of her throat. She hacked a little, said "Nose yucky!" which is her new mantra, and then showed me what was in her hand: a chive leftover from last summer's garden planting. I took the chive from her hand and she headed back outside.

About 15 minutes later, we all sat down for dinner. It was a rare night when we all managed to sit and eat together. Throughout dinner Maya kept saying "Nose yucky!" which indeed it was. It was draining and draining out of her right nostril.

A little concerned because we'd just spent half a week at home with her nursing away an ear infection, and worried because we have a houseful of company expected this weekend to have an early birthday celebration for our two year old, Amy and I wiped her nose and gave each other that look parents often exchange that reads something like, "Good Lord, what's next?"

When dinner was done, Amy brought Maya upstairs ... and that's when she made the discovery. Maya was all ready for bed, but said she needed to go potty. While Amy was sitting with her, she was wiping that nostril again when she saw something green.

Getting closer she saw there was something in her nose.

You guessed it. A chive.

Wow!

Kindergarten Registration

Our boy is almost 5 and today we took Owen to his kindergarten registration. We filled out lots of paperwork while Owen went off with the other kids to meet the teachers, see the rooms, and have some time to play.

Owen's buddy Philip from across the street was also at our registration session, as was his friend Cyrus from his pre-K class. He had a wonderful time and received a sunflower seed to plant, the idea being that by the time the sunflower grows and begins to look down it will be time to go to school.

Here are some pictures from the day:

Owen at the school. Philip's family is arriving in his peripheral vision, hence the askance look in his eyes.

Owen when he returned to the room after his play time.

Owen and Philip.

Post-show

Owen and I had a wonderful time at "Seussical" today. As I mentioned earlier, we met up with his friend Jan and his family at the theater. We waited a long time for face painting before the show, but it was well worth it, as these before and after pictures show.

And I think it was a very fun show for Jan's family. The Zimmermanns are from Germany, where Dr. Seuss is known but not often read as the rhyme scheme, as you can imagine, doesn't translate well into other languages.

But Jan is learning both languages, and his family enjoyed the Seuss stories, which I think made a lot more sense in this musical form.

Maya and Amy stayed home from the show. Her ear was sensitive to loud noises earlier today, so we decided she would do better to stay home and recover instead.

And recover she did. The antibiotics kicked in quickly and Maya ended what had been a three-day fast. She ate two yogurts, some cheese, bread ... the list goes on and on. Amy said it was something to behold.

Ear Infection and the Thinks You Can Think

Daylight Savings Time is here. The time changes are normally not a happy thing for us. Our two years in Arizona taught us how silly it is to Spring Ahead and Fall Back, a sentiment that was further cemented once we had kids and realized how the turn impacted sleep for the better part of a week after.

Today, though, wasn't so bad. Maya, we found out today, has an ear infection and has been sleeping poorly. Last night was better than the night before, but not perfect. Fortunately, Amy and I took advantage of the time change and were in bed at 9 pm old time and weren't roused by the kids for good until 7:30 new.

Note I said, "for good." We were up with Maya for almost a half hour in the middle of the night. She's been sleeping so poorly, and eating worse. While she was up last night, Amy had her in the potty Owen came charging into the bedroom following a nightmare. I walked him back to his room and got him settled, then passed Amy and Maya en route to Maya's room, with Maya repeating "Owen's sad" in a half-roused mantra all the way. We ultimately settled again, though, and I, at least, felt a little more rested today. I got to exercise for the first time in three days, and had time to run to the store and bake some scones for breakfast, doing my part to get everyone else's day started on the right foot.

Speaking of the potty, Maya's pretty much potty trained herself. She knows when it's coming, and we rush there as fast as we can, probably with a 85% success rating. Pretty amazing for a little girl who turns two in 11 days.

This afternoon we're going to one of the Family Series events at the BCPA. "Seussical" is returning. We took the kids when Maya was just born and had a wonderful time. We'll be meeting Owen's friend Jan and his family at the show. But before, Amy is taking Owen to visit a friend of hers who works in the astronomy department at Illinois State to see some space rocks.

Last weekend I drove to Sioux City to judge a show choir competition at Sioux City East High School. This was my fourth time at this competition, a fun weekend filled with good friends, and a good chance to visit others en route. I also got to stop and pick up some UI gear for the kids.

A new Nerf football for Owen ...

And a short-sleeved Iowa outfit for Maya ...

A couple more pictures from the week follow.

Matchboxes around Owen, and a shot sure to make the graduation picture board.