Waylon has an awful cough that sounds like a shout and Eva's pulling the magnets and all they hold off of the fridge. We have serious cabin fever. I just leave Facebook open all day so I can see that there is a world outside of our house. With people in it. It doesn't help that i am reading The Stand for book club.

Eva has imaginary friends. They are called "the Boys and Goyuls." I like to ask her about them. At least one is named Herher, Herher has spots. One of the boys is an expert at getting me out of jail. (The "Mean Goyul Eva" puts me in jail.) I just asked her what the others names are but she said "I don't want to tell you. Ok. Somes is named the Honeys."

Its too damn cold to do anything today and I risked frostbite just loading the groceries and the kids into the car. (Not in that order, of course.) Bill and I now playing a game called "Where Should We Move." In a few (or more) short (or long) months, we will have forgotten that game. I am already feeling sad we won't be taking a spring vacation anywhere warmer this year. May is too far away!

Magic Carpet Ride

If you ask La Lou, today she made a pizza and took a magic carpet ride. If you ask me, she had her first ever ski lesson at Whiteface. I wasn't there to see it, but she's going again next week and I will go then and take pictures. Instead, I stayed home and mopped the kitchen floor.

Waylon


Eva La Lou


They don't look anything alike, do they?

Waylon is a month old today, and gave us (ok, his DAD, his first smile this morning.) We'll try and capture it on film, but it might be tough.

Our house is now warm, and our water is flowing. The last few days were HAIRY.

When it rains...

Sub zero temps and Bill in Rhode Island on a hunting trip: not a good combination. Last night at 11 I heard the heat come on, But 10 minutes later I realized it was no longer on. A trip to the thermostat confirmed my sinking feeling: no heat. So I called the furnace company and then Bill. Only one of those phones was answered, and Bill asked me what he wanted him to do. I hated to have him come home, so I insisted he stay. We toughed it out on the couch all night and the furnace guy called me back at 8am (and he had tried to call in the night, but wrote our number down wrong.) He came, he saw, he fixed. Not ten minutes after he left, I was on the phone with Bill, shutting off the space heater in the bathroom, when I heard POURING water. A deluge on my washing machine. Which froze when it hit the floor. (NB: If you come to visit you must bring slippers...) "COME HOME!"

Now the split pipe is fixed, thanks to our pal Tom. I feel bad that Bill called off the last 3 days of his hunt, but it is not getting any warmer and Eva peed her pants three times between 8 and 10. I've had enough.

Eva Turns 3

Yesterday was La Lou's THIRD birthday, which I find very hard to believe. It feels like she was a baby and I blinked and now she's so big. And when I blink again she'll be 6 and Way will be 3. Wow. She loved talking to her cousins and all of her grandparents yesterday. She was giggling over all the singing and she wished everyone a Happy Birthday right back. But my lord, what do I do with all the toys???? I should warn folks planning babies about having birthdays close to Xmas!

Bill's off to Rhode Island til Sunday, and I am not looking forward to this week. Sub zero temps..highs in the single digits, no adult help at home til Friday. I'm easily frustrated by the birthday girl as of late and none of this will help. I am feeling pretty sorry for myself. Especially since E was up til 10 and woke at 5:30 this am. Yawn.

Duet

It was just after dinner tonight, right before seven, when I was sitting at the kitchen table getting my diaper bag ready for tomorrow and i realized Waylon was snoring a little. He was sacked out in the bouncy seat on the table. But I was also hearing something else. It took me a minute to realize it was Eva. Also snoring, just on the other side of the wall. When I peeked into the living room she was slumped over in a chair...drooling. She can't have been asleep long, because I sent her off not ten minutes before to watch Max ad Ruby while I decorated her birthday cake. (3!!!!) It's a monkey cake. I drew Boots on it with icing.

I hated to wake her. But I did.

I am so pleased that my kids snore in the EXACT SAME WAY. He's just a little louder.

Time flies

Where does the day go? With nothing on my calendar I expected the days to drag, but instead they fly by. Probably because I always seem to be running out of time to get things done...naps end too quickly, a peaceful moment of swinging and quiet activity pass by before I can get to finishing the dishes AND sweeping the floor. I know they say to let the housework go, but I am battling mice and we all know that they love to SHIT on things and that can't be "let go." Right now I should be getting the laundry out of the dryer do Waylon can get his pjs on. And I should also be looking for a few spare nursing pads as the box is empty and a leaky night approaches. Instead, I am standing at the counter typing, listening to Waylon grunting in the pack and play and not hearing noise from La Lou's room (we are warily optimistic about getting to bed tonight!)

The shoe was successfully extracted.

Today La Lou went to day care so that I could run errands with Waylon...but of course I forgot the one thing I wanted to get without her...her birthday present. What good is a tricycle in winter anyway?

The Stats

3 weeks: 10lbs 14oz.
3 years: 32lbs

Junior Miss is acting out. And was displaying UTIish symptoms yesterday, so she was at the doc's this am even though we were there yesterday for Young Master. No UTI, but he wanted to check below deck to make sure she hadn't put anything anywhere it shouldn't be. (Please know that I HATE euphemisms, but I really don't want folks googling about kids' Georgia O'Keefe's and ending up here...) I said, "This one? The one who had to have surgery to remove wet paper balls fom her nose? NEVER!" All clear, of course.

But I should not have been surprised when she interrupted my afternoon shower to tell me Ariel's shoe was up her nose. So now she and Bill are back at the doctor's!

The Last Nerve

Today was rough day.

Way slept well last night, except for some fussy feeding (he just refused to latch on.) But he was very fussy all morning and wasn't content to be set down anywhere for more than 10 minutes at a time. And the amazing Moby Wrap was in the wash. La Lou was super whiny and clingy. We had a nice visit to our day care provider's house this afternoon, but when we came home Way was back to fussy and Bill was just getting up. All I wanted to do was go to the post office. Instead Bill was huffing and puffing about the kitchen being a mess. Like it doesn't annoy me too. Really, it's all about the fact that he works a 6pm to 6am shift and is sleeping from 7 til 3 every day. Which gives us 2 and a half hours with him. And he is getting ready for the half hour of that. IT SUCKS AND I HATE IT. So there. And also he doesn't do anything for me in those 2 hours other than bring in wood. Unless I tell him what to do, and then I get an "I have to get ready for work."

I just felt like my house and the kids and Bill were like waves rushing over me all day long. Just when I felt like I had a bit of a foothold, it all came crashing down. Again. And again.

After dinner was even worse. Bill was gone, but baby was fussy, Eva was destructive, and I banged my head on a shelf in the kitchen. I have a hard enough time keeping Eva on track WITHOUT a baby A.) in my arms or B.) screaming in the background. In the time I was trying to get dinner picked up and Waylon fed she ripped the cover of a brand new book off, got under the kitchen table and ripped apart some styrofoam she found there, and peed on the bathroom floor (as well as on a bathmat, her pants, her socks, and her underwear.)

Now she's in bed but Way is crying and still needs a bath. (And he REALLY needs one, or I would skip it.)

And so on. At least tomorrow is Bill's day off.

Edited to add: And so on. Eva was laughing hysterically in her room with the light on. I went in to turn it off and she was shredding a book that I had put on the TOP shelf of her armoire. At least it wasn't a NEW one. I was furious. FURIOUS. I don't think I have ever been that mad at anyone. Ever. So I told her no tv tomorrow. Is that even a good punishment? Fuck if I know! I have no clue what I am doing here, folks!

Noisy Boy

I have the noisiest baby EVER. He squeaks and glugs when he nurses. He grunts and groans when he's asleep. And he whines and wails when he has gas. But he's not a big crier, so there's that.

Bedtime report: Eva was in bed by nine...just 40 minutes late. Of course we started 40 minutes early...And Waylon was asleep by 9:15. But I made the mistake of staying up til 11 and you know babies can smell weakness, so Way decided to stay awake for 2 hours after his 1 am feeding. Whining and wailing of course!

I need to get out of the house more. It's just SO DAMN COLD! I want to walk. I could put Eva in the stroller and carry Waylon in the Moby if it would just get over 30 degrees. Bill likes to remind me how UNLIKELY that is. But I am counting on January thaw around E's birthday...we've had it for the last 3 years! We have been watching way too much tv. And with Bill working nights I am attempting to keep the volume on E down during his sleeping hours (7 til 2 or 3). It sucks. There's no children's museum close by either. I have a feeling we will be headed to the mall (which is TINY) tomorrow.

We did get out today and drove to Peru to see a Northern Hawk Owl, very rare, that's been hanging out there. Eva was THRILLED because the owl LOOKED at her!

Just the three of us...

We've been home alone for almost an hour and Way has been asleep the whole time. Bill is back at work after his two nights off. Which means I have to do Eva's bedtime. I can't quite figure out how that one will work if W is awake around then. The plan is to start her a little early and hope that it gets her in bed by the normal time. Then Way will get his bath.

Anyone have advice on doing dual bedtimes solo? I know it will get worse as Way's bedtime comes to mean something and La Lou moves upstairs. But that will be after ski season in over, so we will tag team more often (though fishing season keeps Bill out late too...) Share your secrets!

On an unrelated front, La Lou ASKED for SECONDS at dinner tonight. Apparently she LOVES roast beef. She told me so!