Beautiful February Weather: Approaching Month 11 of the Pandemic

Dear Kiddos, 

This is our current situation most mornings. Nathan and Hannah, while the both of you have your heads buried in workbooks, Hailey you are usually resemble a nomadic chicken, as you wander around the house, briefly occupied by whatever catches your eye before you move onto greener pastures. 

On good days, we actually get to sit down together to read some books or play some games. But usually I'm frantically running from being with you, to helping or checking both Nathan and Hannah's work. Sometimes all three of you forget that I am not a supernatural being and try to talk to me all at once, that's when things get a bit crazy. Luckily, Daddy usually hears the escalation and will remind you three that only one person can speak to me at once. 

Hailey, you've gotten pretty good about putting things away when you are done. Sometimes I will leave for a bit and ask you to start cleaning up. When I get back, not only have you cleaned up the game, you've put it back in its spot and you've started to set up a new game. 

So we play more games. 

In science last week, we were learning about living vs. non-living things. We got to use a Christmas gift to create some non-living worms. Afterwards I had you guys create Venn diagrams to compare living worms and non-living worms. We then had a discussion about what living things need. Science, check. 

Hailey, you got super excited when I asked if you would like to try to make some worms. You almost seemed surprised that I would ask you to do such an advanced thing, but you had a blast! 

Then the next day, Hannah, for some reason you were having a tough time getting started on your math. I had you pull out some of the worms that you guys made yesterday and lay them on a paper towel. I then had you write their names (writing and spelling), measure each length, rounding to the nearest cm (math) and then I had you solve the following word problem: The worms are now divided into 2 teams. Which worm team is made up of the longest worms? To figure it out, you had you had to add multiple digits together (more math). Math, check. 

 

One evening Hannah and Hailey put on a musical play. Princess and the Gogo (seal). You can probably tell from the picture below who was the princess and who was the seal. 

To celebrate Black history month, I decided to take you guys down to the capitol to see the Texas African American History Memorial. This was recently erected and was very inspiring to see. You guys had lots of questions about what was going on in the memorial so I tried my best to explain as much as I could to you guys.  

We ended up making a loop around the capitol and Hailey, you insisted that we stop at all the memorials to take a picture. Here are a few of the highlights. 

I quickly snapped this picture the other day of Nathan grabbing another handful of kale chips. Out of the 3 kids, you are now my veggie eater. You love veggies. Yep, I can't believe that I'm saying this and to think that you used to gag at the sight of vegetables!!! Just to give all you mamas who have anti-veggie toddlers hope. Keep offering it to them and one day, they will learn to love vegetables! (And if they don't, you can't say you didn't try.)

Hailey, you started up Chinese story time again and you absolutely love it. You were so excited for class to start that you were willing to sit at the table 10 minutes before class started so that you wouldn't miss out. 

Hannah, you have been in a super creative mood lately. I really have to try my best not to squash your creative spirit with my constant desire to purge the house from clutter. 

This week we are learning about animal parts and so we took a field trip to the zoo this morning. I had you 3 complete a scavenger hunt to look for animals that had certain body parts. As we found them, we talked about how those specialized body parts can help them survive in the wild. 

We went on a great day. It was warmish, overcast and there was literally 4 cars in the parking lot when we arrived and we only saw 2 families there. We basically had the whole place to ourselves! 

My favorite animal to see were probably the capybaras. They are really just big hamsters! 

Out of the 3 of you, Hannah, you were the most enthusiastic about feeding the animals. On the way, you kept asking if we should ask someone where we can buy the animal feed. Nathan, you saw that each bag cost $3.25 and you made a comment on how expensive it was. Hailey, you liked the idea of feeding the animals, but when you felt their tongue on your hand, you became content with just watching. 

Since Nathan, you usually freak out when we have a picnic at the zoo because of a traumatic experience of a peacock stealing part of grandpa's sandwich when you were 2 years old, I decided to make things easier and we had lunch at a park next to the library. 

Again, we were the only family there for awhile and so we played on the playground for a little bit. It's supposed to get cold and rainy in a few days so we will be spending as much time outside as possible. 

You big kids played on the merry-go-round for the longest time. I had to get off because I was going to lose my lunch if I didn't. I don't know how you both could handle all that spinning. I just don't get it: you both get carsick in the car, but spinning fast on a merry-go-round right after lunch doesn't bother you a bit. 

After we got home, while the big kids caught up on schoolwork, Hailey, you crashed on the couch for a bit and then you asked if you could paint for a bit. 

Hailey, you have recently developed a passion for painting. On Saturday, you spent 2 hours, yes, 2 hours sitting in one spot painting picture after picture. Here's a little collage I created with a few of your best pieces of work. Notice how well you stay in the lines if you are coloring something. I love the little detail that you give your people. Auntie Momo noticed that you are now passed the potato people drawing stage. And I wish I can have you explain your drawings to everyone because the content is just so fun and random. For example, in one painting, you told me you drew a crown and then a sky and then a fan because the princess was hot. And then for the castle, you were very proud to point out the bricks that you drew. 

I can't stop thinking about how different of a person you've become. Hailey, you are now pretty much happy and easygoing 99% of the time. When you are upset, you are good at defining your emotions and easy to reason with. For example, today you were asking for dessert at snack time. I told you "no" and then Daddy also told you "no" but he might have said it in a more firm tone than usual. You came over to me, with tears welling in your eyes and said, "Daddy said 'no' and that makes me sad." I let you have a moment and then when I explained that even when we say "no" we still love you, that was good enough for you and you were just ok with it and seemed to feel better. It's moments like these when I step back and say, "wow, that was easy!" Hailey, you have been the most challenging child, but now that we have figured out the issues that were causing you to be uncomfortable I can relax a bit and enjoy parenting once again. It's been a rough 3 years for us, but now that I know what you were dealing with, I feel sad that it was an even rougher time for you. 

We have lots to look forward to the next few days: Chinese New Year, Valentines Day, President's Day and Mardi Gras. We may even try to make our own king's cake... Until next week, 

Love, 

Mommy 
 

Outdoor Adventures and Recycled Inventions

Dear Kiddos,

The photos loaded chronologically, and I'm exhausted, so I'm just going to follow the pics and start writing. 

Hannah, as you get older, I'm finding more examples of how you have more of my genetic material in your body than your siblings. At our last dental visit, we both were surprised with the appearance of 2 cavities. Now, before the pandemic I had not had a cavity in over 15 years (except for the 2 that I got while pregnant with Nathan). But when I asked the dentist if the pandemic was causing more people to get cavities, without hesitation, she said, yes! So let this be a PSA to all. Make sure you are brushing twice a day and flossing! It's too easy to forget that morning brush, at least for me it is. 

Hannah, you took it like a champ. You did so good, but afterwards, you told me that you did not want to go through that again. Yep, me neither. Writing this down for the record. 

Cedar pollen levels are finally at a tolerable level so we've been spending more time outside. One morning I took the 3 of you to the Blue Hole in Wimberly. It looks different from when I came before kids, but that could also be due to how empty it was compared to peak season. 

There were gorgeous cypress trees and the water was crystal clear blue. 

And the hiking paths were short enough that even you, Hailey could walk most of it without being carried. We built several teepees along the trail. 

Just to note that since we don't take car rides often anymore, you 3 get carsick super easily. Either that, or my driving has gotten pretty bad. But when we arrived at the blue hole, Hailey you were in the middle of a tantrum, complaining about your neck. When we finally parked and I unbuckled your seat, you immediately lost your breakfast, projectile style and then you calmed down. 

Nathan, you spend a lot of time reading on your own these days, so I never have a lot of pics of you. One afternoon, we had a brief moment to just jump outside, the 2 of us and I tried to capture a few of your crazy stunts. 

Hailey, on occasion, you will join Hannah for martial arts. Sometimes you are great at following along, but then there are times when I hear Hannah's voice, trying to redirect you, so I go upstairs to rescue her. 

And then I see you doing things like this. It's ok. You are 3. It's funny and cute. So I just pick you up and we read a book together or you help me get dinner ready. 

So I've noticed that Hannah doesn't play with her dolls much at all anymore. I've actually put them all away for now, but then it hit me. Why play with dolls when you have a 3 year old sister to dress up?

Hailey, you've been asking for princess hair every day and apparently only Hannah knows how to do it right. I think my styles are too functional for you. Who wants their hair in a simple braid, out of their eyes, when you can have a hairdo made up of an intricate network of ponytails and faux bangs ? 

We still spend about 1.5 hours a day doing school. Hannah, this is your language arts outfit. You have claimed that the math curriculum that I got for you was too easy, so I got the simplest book for the curriculum that Nathan is using. It's for advanced 2nd graders and with some coaching, you are able to complete the work. It's a perfect challenge and it gives you plenty of opportunities to practice your math facts, but in a sneaky way. You are now ready simple chapter books and have beautiful handwriting. We've come a long way, but I'm happy to see the progress that you've made. It's still a struggle most mornings to get you started on school, but once you get going, it's not so bad. 

Hailey, you still love to cut paper. Now you are making things for people. You even brought up your friend from gymnastics class and you wanted to make him a present. You made him a butterfly out of paper and asked Hannah to wrap it with wrapping paper so that you could, "Give it to my friend, E__." 

Another afternoon we went to a local park to skate/scooter. At the first bend, Hailey, you tripped over a big crack in the sidewalk and got a huge elbow booboo. The rest of the mile was a constant effort of pushing you forward. In hindsight, I should've just had us all go back right after you fell. But, nonetheless, we made it and at the end, you emerged from the forest looking like a princess who had a long night. 

Here's a picture that perfectly summarizes three-nager Hailey. Your awesome hairdo, dress (you are in a dress phase) and hand crafted paper item (in this picture, you made a bracelet). 

Another morning, we went to go explore the lake in our neighborhood. It's getting pretty dry, but there is still some water flowing into it. It was fun getting to walk around in the lake bed and jumping across little streams cut cut by erosion. Great geology lesson opportunity that day too. 

You 2 big kid are set out on building a wooden boat. You two have this grand idea that your boat, made out of sticks and twigs will float and be able to carry you guys across the lake. I've explained to you how it's not going to work and I've even showed you what wooden boats look like, and you still want to try to make one. Ok, not going to fight you on this one. 

Hannah, we have to be careful around you because you see a piece of trash like an opportunity to create something. It's cool to see you create away with paper and a roll of tape. I just can't even imagine my parents ever letting me do that. Tape was stored hidden away at my house growing up. Anyways, you made an ice cream topping dispenser...pretty cool. (haha)

Our awesome neighbor also dropped off a few little gifts for you guys. One of them was a bird book and she had prepared a little ring of twigs for us to get started on a bird nest/basket. We spent all afternoon collecting twigs yesterday and then this morning, we started to make it. 

Hailey, you helped with material prep as you studiously cut away the leaves from each of the branches. 

After about 20 minutes, you both got bored, so I finished up the frame of the nest and started weaving some of the twigs. 

Hannah, you came back to finish up the weaving and you laid some soft leaves and dryer lint in the nest. Now we have a nest ready for a bird to come and customize to their liking. 

I still find that 3 is a crowd. Any 2 kids can play together well for a good amount of time, but anytime a 3rd tries to join, drama follows shortly. Not to say that when 2 are playing, it's always awesome, but there are definitely moments where you 2 are ready to rip each others' arms off, but then there are times where you are falling over each other giggling your hearts out. 

Hailey, you are getting really good at coloring inside the lines...with paint too! And after 3 weeks of Daddy doing a great job at tracking your diet, we've confirmed that you can't have dairy and acidic fruits in excess. Grapes for some reason cause your digestive system havoc. So now, for most of the time, you are actually a really pleasant little human being. You are great at using your words and will often even say your "please" and "thank yous." I was just telling Daddy that we have a terrific three on our hands. 

Today when Hannah was sad, you happened to be on the couch and you told Hannah, "Come here, I can give you some hugs" and then you proceeded to talk her down from her emotions and even stated what Nathan did wrong. 

Well, until next week, 

Love, 

Mommy