Trial Run

The babysitter called about 7am - "Sam won't eat his breakfast, he's pushing his cereal and juice away, what should I do?" Oh no, I think, only 20 minutes into my first day back at work (actually I was driving to work) and already a crisis. "Put him on the phone," I say, and in a serious mom tone (which I've nearly perfected) I firmly state the facts to him : "Sam- no breakfast, no preschool." He didn't respond on the phone but the babysitter left a note saying he ate his breakfast and both boys were "great." By the way, I know this is terrible parenting; obviously, even if he hadn't eaten the cereal he would have been dropped off at school because the babysitter had to go to class! Luckily, they love school so much I can still bribe them with it, but I'm sure my days are numbered.

Owen also had a big day - his first full shift at daycare - he did great! Mommy did well to only call once, okay twice, but the second time was only to find out if he was still sleeping because school was over. The facility is great, in an old elementary school where they have use of the gym in the morning. I've known one of his teachers over 3 years so I didn't feel like I was dropping him off with a stranger and they reported he ate well, played hard - loved the sand table - and even managed to nap for about 45 minutes (he's generally not a good napper). He'll be riding with me two or three days a week to go to daycare and the other days he'll have "Grammy time," or occasionally Eric or I will take a day off. The time has flown by, I can't believe it's almost been 3 months! I also can't believe how far the boys have come in such a short amount of time - physically bigger, major progress with the language, begining to understand family life and the concept of "home." It's wonderful! That's all for now - too tired. New photos next time, I promise.

Fun with the Elders

Well, I've been sitting on these photos for over a week so it's time for an entry; I am finding less time to post these days and wonder if I'll manage at all once I go back to work full time after Thanksgiving. The childcare plan is coming together; next week we'll have a practice day when I go to work to observe/get to know the kids. I'll let you know how it goes...

The boys have been having a blast visiting the grandparents, great-grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins! Nanny (great-grandmother) cruises around on her scooter as the older boys hang on. At Grammy & GeeGee's playing in the leaves outside and building block towers are fun! The only thing better than GeeGee's moustache is wearing shades on his lap.

Owen is pulling himself up on everything! He's standing, walking sideways on furniture and gates and loves walking while holding on to a grown-ups fingers. He is very pleased with his progress and naturally becomes grumpy when he's shut out of once open areas. Sam & Charlie are speaking more in phrases and sentences as well as learning new words daily. English is so fun with confusing issues like "bottom" for butt as well as the bottom drawer. Owen is also making huge progress with communication (mostly in single words) and growing daily!

The older boys finally got a real haircut - their first since being in the states. As you can see by the photo, Sam loved it (even got gel) - Charlie - not so much. Sam & Charlie had another first today - they attended their first birthday party. I was worried they might get disturbed when another child opened presents, blew out candles, etc. but we had no troubles. There were so many other kids and toys there they barely noticed the event itself. Of course they did not want to leave the party - the good news, no tantrums (only mild whining). Well, that's all for now-

Two Poohs and a Pumpkin

Luckily, the afternoon before the preschool Halloween party (and two days before Trick-or-treating) Mommy found the boys affordable, practical and adorable costumes that fit (second hand store on Hammond St. - under $20 for all 3)! Although Owen probably didn't appreciate the whole trick or treating experience as much as the older boys, he does like to indulge in the 'tocolat."

We all raked leaves today, even though the trees are still 1/2 full. Sam & Charlie love to help Daddy do everything; they especially love to go for rides in the truck and were quite disappointed today when there was no trip to the dump after putting leaves in the trailer.

Owen is making huge progress daily - he's standing now for long periods and walking sideways (while holding on to something). He is also "walking" and jumping while holding our hands; this is a big deal because until this week he has never shown any interest in doing this - we used to hold him in the walk position and he would fold his legs up away from the floor. It is wonderful to see him smile - he is so proud of himself with his new mobility and often claps with us after a big new experience!

Hockey season is back! We follow the University of Maine men's team and share season tickets with my folks. Even more exciting than the games (won last night, 4-1) is the fact that we have an excuse to go on dates! We expected to loose most of our "alone time" after the kids came home, but I don't think we knew how much we'd really miss it!