Lego Land

No, we did not take a trip to the amusement park thus named.  I’m talking about how our house seems to spontaneously create Lego.  Everywhere I look, there is Lego.  And now that Malia is getting around on her own, the “you can’t leave Lego on the floor” lecture is pretty much a daily occurrence.  And yet it still seems to “mysteriously” appear all over the house.  The boys are just as baffled as I am.  (I wonder if I should add household amnesia to the common complaints of domestic deafness and blindness.)  So in my daily ramblings around the house, it is totally normal to end up with a pocketful of bricks that need to be returned to the plastic bins.  But today our house pulled a new one on me.  As I was peeking out the front window to check on Matthew as he played in the front yard, I happened to look over and see this:

While it may not be easily identifiable to the untrained eye, that is a Lego tire wedged into the space in between the molding around the window and the wall.  And of course no one knows how it got there.  At least it didn’t magically appear on the floor this time.  Maybe the lectures are actually getting through to our house…

A Normal Sized Noggin

Malia had her six month check up today and her head has finally caught up with the rest of her.  At two months, she was at about the 60^th percentile for height and weight but in the 4^th percentile for head size.  Her head looked kind of weird because it was so small for her body.  At four months she was still at about the 60^th percentile for height and weight and while her head was beginning to catch up (23%) it was still too small for her body.  In the last little while, her head has started to look better sized and today’s stats confirm that she is a well proportioned baby: 16 lbs 12 oz. (63%), 26 ½ inches (77%), and head size of 43 cm (64%).

Malia is “talking” up a storm (the typical gurgles and babbling as well as squealing and growling), scooting herself around the floor on her back, and nearly sitting up on her own.  The only thing that she really should be doing that she’s not is rolling over.  But in all honesty, I think she doesn’t roll because she doesn’t want to rather than because she can’t.  She will roll herself all the way up on her side and then crank her head back to look at things.  One little nudge would send her over, but she really doesn’t want to end up on her tummy so she always rolls back.  The doctor tells us that some kids just skip certain developmental milestones and as long as she is doing other things (sitting up, moving around on her own…even if it is on her back, etc.) all is well.

So half a year is gone and (with no surprise whatsoever) Malia continues to do things her own way and let us know exactly what she wants!

The Blanket Thief

Malia is becoming a blankie baby.  She isn’t very discriminate yet, but when she is falling asleep she likes to suck her thumb and hold on to a blanket, burp rag, her clothes, pretty much whatever is available. 

She has a velvet and satin dress that I love because it is so stinkin’ cute.  She loves it because the texture is exactly the same as her purple blankie.  It’s like wearing a blanket that she can’t lose if she forgets to hold on to it.

When I noticed that her floor scooting had put her in the same vicinity as Matthew’s blanket and that she was taking full advantage of said blankie, it made me chuckle because Matthew did the exact same thing to Nathan.

Three of my children have been blankie babies and I’ve learned that a silky element is of utmost importance.  Of course, I was a silky blankie kind of girl myself, so I guess I shouldn’t be surprised that most of my offspring have found comfort in the same way.

Food, Glorious Food!

As per allergist’s and doctor’s recommendations, we waited until Malia hit the six month mark before starting her on solid food.  Today was the big day.  She wasn’t quite sure what to do with her rice cereal at first…

…but it only took her a couple of bites to figure it all out.  She opened her mouth right up and then she started grabbing the spoon and shoving it in her mouth.  Apparently she was ready for real food!

Next up: applesauce.  Yum!

All Aboard the Dinosaur Train!

Just in case there is any doubt, Matthew’s favorite t.v. show right now is Dinosaur Train.  So when it came to picking a party theme, it was pretty much a no brainer.  When his friends arrived on Friday afternoon, each one received a ticket and a dinosaur nose since only dinosaurs can ride the dinosaur train and everyone needs a ticket.

To eliminate the possibility of a dinosaur sized meltdown when someone lost their ticket, I put them on a piece of yarn so they could be worn around dino-necks.  Then we punched their tickets with a hole punch as we visited each “station.”  Matthew was the Conductor, hollering out, “Time tunnel!” and “Tickets please!” at the appropriate moments.  We played dinosaur bowling, t-rex tracks (like musical chairs but with dinosaur footprints), Dinosaur Train bingo, and The Conductor Says.  (Thanks to www.ThePartyAnimal-Blog.org for the game ideas.)

 (Notice that Matthew is giving me the evil eye because I'm taking pictures of him.)

We finished the party with cupcakes and popsicles served on dinosaur plates.  I had no desire to try to make Dinosaur Train cupcakes, so I made simple cupcake toppers instead.  Easiest theme cupcakes I’ve ever made.

Not only did Matthew and his friends have a great time, but even Daniel and Nathan commented that the party was a lot more fun than they expected.  The bigger boys were great helpers, by the way.  Couldn’t have done it without them.  And Malia was a gem for sleeping through the whole thing.

Today we assembled Matthew’s cake for his celebration with my family.  I have cupcake pans that make a big long train of cupcakes, so we used that and decorated it with colored glaze, candy, and Dinosaur Train passengers.  It was a fun way to do a cake and very easy to serve.

I can't believe that Matthew is five already.  Where does the time go?

Matthew’s Special Day

Today is Matthew’s birthday.  It is a pretty important day because in our family, when you turn five you are old enough to have your own library card.  And since the library is his favorite place, this is a pretty big deal for Matthew.  As soon as the library was open this morning, we got that most important task taken care of.  Matthew knows just how to check out books and he was super excited to check them out on his very own, brand new library card.

Kevin's mom came by and brought Matthew some nice new Sunday clothes, a set of look and find books, and a dinosaur book.  Kev and I picked out a set of Dinosaur Train Megabloks (think Lego but a different brand) and some glow in the dark Dinosaur Train dinos.  He also got Hot Wheels sized Mater and Finn McMissile from Cars 2.  He was pretty darn excited about everything.

On this occasion, let me share a few tidbits about Matthew: 

     His favorite place is the library.
     His favorite color is white.

     His favorite number is 100.

     His favorite food is chicken nuggets.

     His favorite book, t.v. show, and movie are all Dinosaur Train.

     When he grows up he wants to be a dad.

     He still won’t stand on the rectangle at preschool.

     He is learning to read and is pretty darn pleased with himself.

     He loves Malia…a lot.

     He is really responsible and careful where his allergies are concerned.

     He loves preschool.

     He loves to help me cook. 

     He is a great helper.

I've said it before and I'll say it again, life would be boring without this kid.  But he keeps us from getting too serious, which we definitely need at times!

He's A Big Thinker

It's science fair season at our house.  Daniel has spent the past two weeks immersed in his project.  He hasn't taken much time for anything else.  But today was the big day.  Daniel received a third place award again. (Our school has multiple awards for each place.)  Being the level headed kid that he is, getting third place does not bother him.  In fact, he is pretty proud of himself.  As for me, I'm totally proud of him.  One of the requirements for our science fair is that the project should solve a real life problem.  As I wandered around looking at the other projects, I could see that each project fit that criteria.  But while the other kids were solving problems like which bread molds faster and how to cool down a can of soda the quickest, Daniel was dealing with how the design of a bridge effects its safety in an earthquake.  The idea of "Go Big or Go Home" is a pretty good description of how he thinks.  He was dealing with radio waves in first grade, after all.  That should have clued me in to how big he thinks.  I've told him that kind of thinking is what changes the world.  If he keeps up the big thinking and the fabulous work ethic, he will be able to do anything he wants.  And I'll be standing in the background cheering him on.

Further Proof That He’s Not a Normal Four Year Old

Matthew just came upstairs and asked me if he could have a snack.  When I answered in the affirmative, he asked if we have any lettuce.  He is currently sitting at the counter eating green salad (sans dressing) out of the big container with his fingers.

I am one of those lucky moms who have a child who eats all his vegetables first.  When Matthew recovered from having the flu last month, the first thing he wanted to eat was salad.  Then he ignored the chicken and rice and asked for more lettuce.  He also loves broccoli.  And green beans.  And red peppers, green onions, tomatoes and avocado.  I dare you to find another four year old who will pass up dessert but ask for more cucumbers.