Archive for March, 2007

Just a few cute stories from the last few days:

Eliza has become very good at counting lately. On our bike ride the other day, I could hear her: "One, two, twee, fou, fie." Jay looked around and saw her carefully pointing to each of the little designs on the bar of her bike seat. She will also hide behind her hands and count, like she's playing hide and seek. I guess she's seen other kids doing the same thing, so why not?

Singing has become a favorite pastime for both of the kids, but today Eliza didn't want James to take over her song. We had been singing "Baa, Baa, Black Sheep", and James tried to join in. "No, James!" she said, "My sheeps!"

James wanted to dip spaghetti noodles in barbecue sauce (they were both on the table, and I guess he thought it would be interesting.) He kept asking, so I closed my eyes for a few seconds in exasperation. He looked at me and asked, "Are you seeing it in your head?" He thought I was trying to imagine what it would taste like!

Eliza is getting much better at speaking clearly, and she mostly speaks in sentences now. However, she has been getting lazy when saying her name, so it comes out sounding like "Ya-ya" most of the time. Today James was running around, pretending to be a super hero, and shouting, "Super James!" Eliza, not to be outdone, followed close behind and yelled, "Supah Ya-ya!" She even looked at me and yelled, "Supah Mama!" We must have a super family!

I am beginning to realize that Eliza has a very good smell memory. I was eating chips and dip a little while ago, and Eliza called me over to help with something. I leaned over to her and she started saying, "I-un chips! I-un chips!" She has also done the same thing when I have eaten M&Ms: "I-un em-ems! I-un em-ems!" I guess I'm going to have to start brushing my teeth after every snack.

We went for a bike ride Saturday, and it was warm and sunny. We all got a little sunburned, because I didn't even think about needing sunscreen—it's been so long since we have been outside for that long! We had a good ride, starting at Burns Park in North Little Rock and riding over the "Big Dam Bridge," a pedestrian/bicycle bridge that crosses the Arkansas River and was completed last fall. The kids enjoyed the ride, with Eliza falling asleep for at least 30 minutes of it. I had to adjust their helmets before we started because their heads have grown since last fall when we last went for a ride! It was good to have a family outing, and it was especially good to have Daddy with us!

Tuesday we went out to Wye Mountain to see the field of daffodils. It has become sort of a tradition, but this year we were a little late and the blooms were mostly dried up. There were a few bunches, however, that were still pretty, and we took a few pictures.

I finally got to rejoin society this week, attending choir Wednesday and Bible study Thursday. It was good to get back into a routine, even though it will be messed up again next week because of spring break, and both of my activities are cancelled. I can't seem to win! I guess it's actually a good thing they're cancelled, because I am going to Nashville next weekend for my friend Suzanne's wedding shower. I'll be able to leave earlier in the week and stop to see people in Memphis. Jay will also be in Nashville for a Red Hat conference. What a coincidence, huh? Just another reminder that God is good!

Going through airport security was traumatic for James, because we had to pour his chocolate milk out and buy him some more once we got through. He was already tired, and that didn't help his mood any. He looked very sad and told everyone we met about his chocolate milk, including the woman next to us at the gate who was trying to take a nap. Later, he even made up a song about it: "I had to pour my chocolate milk down the drain, and I said 'Bummer'; 'Bummer'; I said 'Bummer'..." It sounded like the blues. In New York, we watched a lot of Nick Jr. shows like Wonder Pets, Dora, and Backyardigans, where they sing a lot. So James has started singing what he's thinking sometimes.

We went to my mom's house Monday for the first time since we got back from New York. James ran up the stairs to the kids' bedrooms, but when he got there, he just stared. He went from one bedroom to the next, and then he said, "This is not very good. This is not good at all!" My family had inherited a waterbed, and so they had switched the beds all around while we were gone. James was not happy about the change! He's gotten used to it now, but he still tells people, "I don't like change!"

The weather in New York on Friday left Jay stranded there, unable to come back home for the weekend. I had really been looking forward to him being home, so I was pretty sad about it. I decided to make the most of the weekend and go to Memphis with my family to see my extended family. We have not been there since Christmas, so it was good to see all of them. My Granny, who fell and broke her hip on New Year's Day, is doing very well. She gets around without her cane and only walks with a slight limp. She is still just as busy as before. My other grandparents are also doing well, and they all enjoyed seeing how much the kids have grown.

Sunday was the 29th anniversary of my grandfather's death, so my dad took us out to the cemetery to visit his grave site. The kids enjoyed walking around the cemetery, and we took some pictures there, too. It was a good weekend, but it was hard not getting to see Jay. After seeing him every day for 3 weeks, 2 weeks is a long time to not see him at all! At least we are mostly well now—the kids almost have their appetites back, and I only have a little bit of chest congestion left over from my cold. We're making it!

Whew! These last few days have been rather miserable here at home. Tuesday night James got me up around 1:30 saying he wanted a drink. I got him one, and then decided to see if he also needed to go to the bathroom. It was a good thing I chose to stand him in front of the potty, because he just started throwing up. The rest of the night involved getting up every 15 to 30 minutes so that James could try to throw up more. I think it finally ended around 5:00, so I was able to get a little sleep before Eliza woke up. James felt much better Wednesday, but unfortunately, Eliza started throwing up not long after lunch. She only threw up one more time during the day, and then several times during the night. No one has thrown up today, thank goodness, but we all felt a little weak.

On top of all this, I have been sick with a bad cold and cough that I started getting before we left New York. The lack of sleep has failed to help, I'm sure, but I haven't felt too bad. I did feel a little queasy yesterday, but perhaps it was mostly having to deal with the clean-up. The cough has been bothering me the most, because it's mostly non-productive and just really annoying. I was upset that I didn't get to go to choir Wednesday night or Bible study Thursday morning, since I have already missed 3 weeks from being in New York.

We played outside a little this afternoon, and it was good to get out and get some fresh air, especially after having been sick and cooped up in the house these last few days. The kids are still a little confused over the sudden change in climate—James was upset when I put short sleeves on him, and they both were asking about coats before we went outside. It's spring here, with flowers and trees blooming, birds singing, and temperatures in the 70s. I took a cute picture of Eliza the other day at my family's house while we were outside just enjoying the warm weather. It's one more thing I like about the south!

I finally got around to posting pictures from our New York trip. Enjoy!

We mostly rested today. Jay had to fly back to New York, and so he left around 2:00. I think Eliza must have missed all our toys…she ran around dragging out everything she could find. :) James is lamenting over our lack of TV channels. But it is good to be home, in our own beds (and rooms—lots and lots of rooms!)

Well, we made it home from New York! Our two flights were uneventful, thank goodness! We are pretty exhausted, but glad to be here. It was quite a shock, however, to go from temperatures in the 20s to 70 degrees here in Little Rock. It did warm up to around 40 degrees when we left New York this morning, but that's much warmer than it has been the last few days. Some of my family met us at the airport, so it was like we had our own welcoming party! It was at least enough of a show to make the people around us smile.

We didn't get out too much this last week…it was just too cold! But we did manage to make it to the Children's Museum of Manhattan on Tuesday, which was fun. Jay had taken the morning off, but we got a kind of late start and didn't make it there until around 1:00. It's on the upper west side, which is quite a ways from our east-midtown apartment. It took us about an hour to get there via subway. Jay had to get back to work pretty soon after we got there, but I decided to stay so the kids could play longer. I was very nervous about taking the subway back by myself with the kids, but Jay mapped it out for me, including finding elevators and handicap-accessible gates so that I could navigate our double stroller through the underground. I managed just fine, and the kids slept through the entire subway trip, worn out from playing at the museum. I feel like I've passed some sort of test for being a New York mom!

This trip was both exciting and exhausting. We lost a few items that were dear to us, and that was very traumatic. Maybe God is trying to remind us that stuff is not as important as things of eternal value! Still, it also made me realize how different New York is from Little Rock. A few weeks before we left for New York, I apparently dropped my debit card as I was leaving Kohl's. I didn't realize it until the next day when I tried to use it and couldn't find it. I called Kohl's to see if maybe someone had turned it in, and they had! Jay's camera bag (which we think was left in the taxi) had a card with contact information on it, so we know whoever has it didn't even try to find out who it belonged to. We are so accustomed to our "small southern city" life, it is hard for us to survive in the big city! (So we're apparently learning the hard way.)

Two things we were glad to see when we got back into town (other than our house): Cracker Barrel and Wal-Mart! New York doesn't know what it's missing! :)

Yesterday was a beautiful day here in the Big Apple. We had planned a visit to the American Museum of Natural History, but we postponed it a little while so that we could walk though Central Park and enjoy the unseasonably warm weather. We ate lunch in the park, played on a bear statue and a playground, and walked across the park to the museum. We were even able to take off our coats for a while! As we were going along, we asked James if he remembered the name of the park. "Grand Central Park?" he asked. I think that suits it just fine.

The museum was really interesting. Jay was able to get a new camera on Friday to replace the one we lost, so he enjoyed taking pictures. The dinosaur skeletons are of course the main attraction, and it was neat to actually see them in person. The kids were really tired by the time we got to the museum, so they weren't quite as interested as they might have been otherwise, but they still had a good time, I think. We got a double stroller the other day, and that made things a little easier on us. We have been giving James piggyback rides when he got tired, but now he can ride with Eliza! The animal exhibits were also very interesting. James especially liked the big elephant display in the African room. It was a herd of eight real stuffed elephants, so it was huge. His favorite part of the museum, though, was probably the little computers they had at some of the exhibits that had more information; he just wanted to roll the ball that moved the cursor. Both kids were asleep when we left the museum. It is really difficult to carry the double stroller with both kids in it up and down stairs, which was necessary to get on the subway. I'm a little sore today! I'm learning just how unfriendly the subway is for strollers; I can't imagine trying to do it by myself (thankfully, I shouldn't have to). There are some elevators, but not everywhere, and there are some places that only have the little turnstiles to get out, which a stroller won't fit through. It's all very difficult, but we have managed to make it so far. Hopefully the weather will be warmer the next time we come up here, and I will be able to put the kids in the stroller and walk most places. I don't mind some extra walking if it means avoiding the subway!

We really like our little apartment. It's a lot easier to keep clean than the house because it's so small, and we don't have much stuff here! Jay got up early the other day and waited in line for the Nintendo store to open so he could buy a Wii game console (they apparently sell out every day shortly after opening; Jay said there were probably at least 50 people in line by the time the store opened.) We have been having fun with that, especially James. He wants to play it all the time, though, and that can be a problem.

We have enjoyed our stay in New York, but we are about ready to get home. This is our last weekend to enjoy, so we are trying to make the most of it. In spite of some traumatic events, it has been a good visit. We get to see Daddy every day, and that is worth it all!