Day 1984

Chinchilla approves of the rearrangement in Lizard’s room. He’s having so much fun playing in there, especially now that he’s figured out how to climb into the toy chest.

Even with all the changes, he’s doing well napping in that room. Now we just have to convince him to nap for long enough that he doesn’t turn into a holy grumpy terror.

Day 1983

Rearranged Lizard’s room to be the kids’ room. Full of trepidation.

And how did my babies get so big, so fast?

Day 1982

And we’re into the 5+ puzzles. Hopefully we didn’t overshoot... it would be a pity to dampen that vast enthusiasm.

Day 1981

It’s so nice having a kid who thinks errands are actually fun expeditions. It kinda turns them into fun expeditions.

Day 1980

We watched Despicable Me with Lizard today. I asked her what her favourite part was, expecting something about minions (or possibly unicorns). Nope. She picked the most ordinary, everyday part of the movie:

“Gru! When Gru goes with the little girls to dance class!”

Day 1979

Today when Lizard got home she asked if she could do a puzzle (as she has done every day for the last many days). She then proceeded to do every puzzle she has, some of them more than once, while we were making dinner.

We need to get more puzzles...

Day 1978

Lizard has been experimenting with sounds. She replaces some of the sounds in words (resulting in what I think is my favourite made-up baby name of all time: Tatophony), makes silly noises, and finally... has apparently started developing her own language. Even odds whether the purpose is to be silly or to be obstreperous.

Meanwhile, I’m beginning to wonder what will happen first: Chinchilla starting to walk, or him getting just tall enough that he can climb up onto the couch, the coffee table, his sister’s bed...etc. We may need to get that kid some ankle weights...

Day 1977

The baby has definitely figured out he can reach higher if he climbs onto something to get a boost. Cool it, little monkey! At least wait until you have the balance to walk before you climb all over everything.

Day 1976

The obsession with puzzles continues. This evening Lizard turned all the pieces of one of her puzzles upside down and put it together like that.

Day 1975

We’ve been having conversations with Lizard for ages, but it was wonderful watching her participate in conversation with a tableful of people. She was even speaking loudly enough that people could hear her (when they were paying attention at least)!

Also, kinda enjoying team fitness in the house. It’s encouraging having a buddy... and, we can now both exercise AT THE SAME TIME. Revolutionary!

Day 1974

Lizard’s imaginary play involves lots of “fiery bolcanoes” right now. Luckily, she can apparently stop eruptions by yelling “STOP BOLCANO!” (although she agrees with her Auntie’s suggestion that next time she try saying please). If that doesn’t work, you have to run away while screaming “AHHHH BOLCANO!”, and then you punch the rocks.

Also, she’d like to ride whale. So she’s going to go to the ocean, find a whale and say please. And the whale will say yes, and off they’ll go.

And she’s decided that her little brother dreams about octopi.

Day 1973

That feeling when you tell your kid you’re going to shower and she comes and gives you a little hug, looks you dead in the eye and says “Be brave, okay?”

WHAT DO YOU KNOW THAT I DON’T?!?!

Day 1972

Chinchilla has discovered puffing out his cheeks and blowing and it is one of my new favourite things.

Lizard has discovered a sudden and intense passion for jigsaw puzzles, and we might be in trouble already...

Day 1971

Dear Baby,

You are a human, not a monkey. Please act accordingly. Climbing should be strictly limited to ropes, trees, ladders, and mountains. And absolutely should wait until you’re older.

Love,

Your Mother

Day 1970

It feels like the baby is moments away from sprouting three new teeth, and from taking his first steps.

And apparently that means he’s too excited to nap or to poop on a regular schedule.

(Could also be related to his cold. Unlikely though, right?)

Day 1969

Babies are so good at finding things they shouldn’t have that today Chinchilla found a thingamabob that neither Husband nor I recognize. We’re not even sure what it is. We’ve lived here for years, and he’s finding things we didn’t even know existed. For all we know, he could have apparated it into existence; that would make about as much sense.

Day 1968

There ought to be a law of nature that parents can’t get sick until their kids are old enough to be at least moderately self-sufficient.

Day 1967

I’m not really sure how I feel about my three year old telling me to “stop horsing around”.
Especially since I was sitting on the couch watching the baby play at the time.

Also, we made the baby super overtired today. When the cranky baby gets cranking, I have to remind myself that:

1. It’s not his fault he didn’t get enough sleep (this time, anyway...)

2. Remember when you took the sleeping baby out of his car seat and he kept sleeping on your shoulder and you got snuggles? Yeaaaaaaaaah.

Day 1966

It takes waaaaay more will power to say ‘no, you can’t watch another episode’ when they’re snuggling with you while they watch.

And also if they’re watching the magic school bus.

Day 1965

Got a haircut and turned my twisted, tangled blob of hair into nice smooth flattering lines.

Lizard: “Mommy, your hair is messy! Who are you?”

I expect she’ll become much more appreciative once I let her brush it.

Day 1964

Lizard stayed home with me today. It was our first quiet day at home for a while, and it was fun to see how she’s developed. She’s getting better at developing an eye for jigsaw puzzles, she’s memorized parts of library books we’ve only read a handful of times.

And the imagination... good gravy. We scared off a vast assortment of beasts: a horrible, horrible, horrible beast, a cranky beast, a baby beast, a panda beast, a zebra beast, a wildebeest beast (admittedly my suggestion), several mouse beasts of varying sizes and familial relationships, and even a slipper beast wearing slippers. She was also briefly a sister beast who was worried because she lost her ring. And then she and I were the mommy king and the daddy king who to the beast’s kingdoms to rescue her brother.

Chinchilla has officially decided that chasing games are the best, so I think he’ll be pretty stoked to be assigned roles in Lizard’s beast games for a while.

Assuming she can figure out how to tackle him more gently...

Day 1963

Chinchilla has discovered that if he climbs up to a parent sitting on the couch the dangerous way (standing on the arm of his sister’s foam coach), he will always get picked up.

He’s also discovering that crying when we say ‘no’ does not change the answer to ‘yes’. He’s still testing that theory though.

Day 1962

The bedtime routine now includes practicing blowing bubbles in water. What could go wrong with a little plastic container filled with water around a tired three year old?

Day 1961

Never even joke about your kids being able to look after themselves or they will promptly fall on their faces.

Day 1960 (bonus)

...and the second day in a row that Chinchilla answered a question in the affirmative by saying “YEAH YEAH YEAH”. So maybe that’s a thing now?

Day 1960

Babies and toddlers can smell the desperation when you need them to nap. And why would they want to sleep through desperation?!

And then they behave themselves nicely even without naps, and you realize all the internal screaming was unnecessary.

Day 1959

If you need a stark reminder of how teeny your kid is, sign them up for swimming lessons.

Day 1958

It’s disconcerting to watch Groundhog Day and for there to be scenes that you don’t recognize because the version you watched so very many times was cut down for TV. It just feels wrong! The movie should be the same as it was last time. And the time before. And the time before that. And the time before that. And the time before that...

Day 1957

Lizard was “fixing” her “broken” dinosaur with a screwdriver this morning. I introduced the concept of doctors giving stitches, and she’d stitched up a row of dinosaurs before she left for daycare.

I forgot one of the Universal Laws of Babies: the stickier the lunch, the more their hands are attracted to their hair.