Babysitter

Savannah put the twins to bed for us tonight.  She read them their stories and tucked them in.  The girls were just as they are for us when Savannah tried to leave the room.  Fun to put to bed but won't let you walk out of their room.  That is when they get cranky and I get frustrated.  They wanted water, headbands, the door open and the lights on.  I let Savannah struggle for awhile because I knew she really wanted to have them quiet and in bed with no help.  I did have to step in eventually.

Once the girls were in bed Savannah and I came downstairs and this is what she said.  "They are just such sweet girls Mommy.  I really enjoy spending time with them.  It was nice reading their stories.  That was just so enjoyable."

Wow, I thought she would have been frustrated that she didn't get them 100% to bed.  I guess I could take a lesson or two and not get so frustrated by their bedtime tactics.  Savannah did mention that she could make it her job to put them to bed every Saturday night.  Hmmm, how old does one have to be to babysit?

4 Year Old Appointment

The girls had their four year old checkups this week.  It is always a brutal day because their doctor is all the way in the city.  It takes us a good hour door to door and always forces us to miss the nap.  Each girl is always thrilled to go until in the building and then fights me every step of the way.  I always arrive home exhausted.

Before we saw the docs, the girls had to have their weights, heights, and BP done.  There was a resounding, "NO squeezy squeezy!," which is what we call the blood pressure cuff.  Adeline was a mess just being in the same room with it but Lila put on her brave face allowed the cuff to be wrapped around her arm.  I was very proud of her.  The vitals are always the hardest part of the appointment for Adeline.  There is a lot of touching and it moves quickly.  We were barely able to get her to stand on the scale.  The unknown really freaks her out in these situations.  She screamed, "It's not noisy!" but couldn't process that it wasn't going to move or make noise when we told her.  Here she is sporting her fifth percentile weight.  30 pounds continues to elude the girl.  

While waiting in the room, the girls took out the crayons and entertained themselves which is a far cry from years past.  Here is Lila's drawing of Adeline with a squeezy squeezy (I drew the cuff).  She tried really hard to make her look scared and added tears.  I think she did a great job.

 

This visit went pretty well.  We love Dr. McNett but see him only once or twice a year since our Pulmonologist stands in as our sick doctor.  Dr. McNett sees special babies and we are happy to be under his care.  He has seen it all and always comments on how remarkable the girls are.  This time was no exception.

First, we are visited by his resident.  This is the only appointment that I will give a resident the time of day.  Why?  Because they actually read the chart!  They sit for at least a half an hour and read the history of the girls.  It is long, involved, and leaves them wondering who they will meet when entering the room, but they always do it. 

The girls responded well to the resident.  He started by asking how they were developmentally using questions such as, "I bet the stairs are really hard for them, can they do them independently yet."  He was surprised to hear how much they can do and really surprised when they started talking to him.  He wasn't expecting sentences and, boy, was he wrong.  We have to remember that he sees special babies and we the very lucky ones when it comes to this population of children.

Next, Dr. McNett came in to see the girls.  They looked at books and just talked.  It gave him a chance to get a feel for them.  He was thrilled.  He was also able to help us out with some of Lila's stomach issues - possible constipation that presents as diarrhea.  Don't ask me how.  Other than that, it was no news is good news.  

The worst part of the appointment was the shots.  Each girl received four boosters!  It was awful and they were so hurt by it.  Dr. McNett held Adeline for me while Lila and I stepped out.  Miss Adeline was so upset when they opened the door.  I felt like I betrayed her.  Lila wasn't going to let Dr. McNett hold her so I had to which broke my heart as well.  

We left crying.  I walked down the side walk, in the middle of city, with a girl on either hand crying.  However, they recovered after I spied a Dunkin Donuts.  They were able to hold the tears in when ordering but when I mentioned that they had just received four shots to the man behind the counter, both girls broke out in sobs.  I guess the girls were a pretty compelling case because our donuts were free!

Looks Like Only One is Going to Fly the Next

When I asked Lila what she wanted to be when she grew up, her first reponse was, "A Pumpkin."  Funny how we were just looking at a pumpkin Savannah had drawn.  After a couple of pensive moments, Miss Lila said, "I can't be a pumpkin, it would get in my mouth."  I guess this is how a mind a four year old works?

We moved past the pumpkin and tried other options but she didn't bite.  Finally, I asked her if she wanted to have a baby when she was big like me and she said, "Yes."  Then she hesitated and asked, with wondering eyes, "Will the baby poop?"  I told her yes and she was thrilled.  Poop is in every round of the Baby/Mommy game that is played non-stop in this house.  I asked Lila if she was going to snuggle her baby and she said, "NO."  The baby will be stinky, YUCK."

Lila Grace ended the conversation a few seconds later with, "Actually Mommy, when I get big I just want to snuggle you. Okay?"

During this conversation, Adeline poked her head in my door and told me, "I am going to drive a BIG bus when I get big Mom." 

Looks like Lila and Savannah are planning to live with me forever, while their sister cruises through life driving a big bus.  Only time will tell. . .

Interantional Peace Day 2010

Today, West Chester Friends celebrated Peace Day 2010. The entire school comes together for a peace parade.  This year, the school participated in Pinwheels for Peace , which was a nice way for the students to feel a part of a larger communtiy. Because Savannah's school is Quaker, peace is a very serious subject.  The children don't just talk about it, they really try to put it in to action.  Some students are more successful than others, and I can tell you that Savannah takes this day seriously.

I had the pleasure of bringing Adeline, Lila and Charlotte to the parade.  Adeline wouldn't let go of Savannah's hand and assimilated to the first grade line nicely.  It is very excitng to be a first grader on Peace Day because each first grader holds a paper mache peace dove while leading the school on their 15 minute march.  This parade is a silent one as students are called to think about their community and communities across the world and how they can make a peaceful impact on both.  The three little girls did a great job respecting the silence and treking along with T. Connie's class.  Adeline was most proud of her big sister and wanted the entire school to know she belonged to Savannah.

After the parade, students placed their pinwheels in front of the meeting house in order to be a public display reminder to all those who drive by - and there are MANY cars each day.   Next, we came together as a circle of Friends and were recognized by the Mayor and Head of School. The celebration ended with some touching songs that were accompanied by four year old dancing.

Watching these three march with the big kids, sing, and dance was rather inspiring. Four years ago all three were figting for life, side by side, in the NICU. Never did I imagine that it was life where all three girls would walk, talk, and function independently. Imagine how I felt today watching them walk hand in hand with Savannah, so proud to be a part of the big kids! While they warmed many hearts today, mine was the warmest! I was the only one that knew the magnitude of their march.

Manners!

My friend Miss Sara brought Lila home from school today.  When I walked out to get her, she stood up in Miss Sara's van while looking her straight in the eye and said, "Thanks for driving me home in your car."  Her words weren't in the proper order and I don't know exactly how they came out.  But I do know that she was trying to say the above without any prompting from me.  I am thrilled that she recognized the need for a proper thank you!

Getting Older

On the way to school this morning, Savannah asked me if I remembered how she used to take Santa gifts.  I told her I did and that I always thought it was so sweet.  She responded with, "I think I am getting a little too old to do those kind of things now."

Two minutes later she told me that she wasn't sure that she wanted to have kids.  "I think I would just rather live with you and daddy when I grow up."

She is getting older but she isn't ready to fly the nest just yet.

Who's the baby?

Yesterday, the twins had the most phenomenal day together.  Alex and I sat out on the deck researching cars while the twins played a solid 5 hours together.  One must brace him/herself for this one. . .  THE TWINS LEFT US ALONE THE ENTIRE TIME!  Yes, they never fought, never checked in, and never needed us for one thing.  They played and played and played some more.  They made up games, role played as a mommy and baby, cooked food (Thomas Train track pieces) and laughed their little heads off.  They even tried to play a board game together.  It was so cute, very endearing and, most notably, rare.  My friend always tells me that we have the kids we raise.  Suffice it to say, we don't raise very independent kids.  Somehow, our kids are always sharing our space, attaching themselves to our hips or, if ignored, biting at our ankles.  This was clearly not the case yesterday.

A day later, the tides have changed.  While sitting at the dinner table, Adeline played the mommy card.  Alex and I are always encouraging Lila to eat but tonight, Adeline felt that she needed to be the boss.  After telling Lila that she needed to eat her chicken or go sit in her bed, I turned to Adeline and said,

"Adeline you are not the Mommy."

A:  (very serious) Yes I am

Me:  Are you a Mommy Adeline?

A:  Yes!

M:  Well who is your baby?

A:  That girl right over there.  (pointing across the table with a very straight face)  Lila Grace is my baby.

We were all laughing hysterically which helped her bypass the point I was trying to make.