days in the sun

Not, of course, today or yesterday: though sunny, it has been cold! Three items of note and two photos: (1) Anna continues to have success with the potty, especially at school, where all her classmates cheer her every time; (2) she has a new, smaller bike, which is easier for her to ride (Santa misjudged slightly...); and (3) Thomas has a new hobby, thanks to his Uncle Nick and Aunt Carmen (I see some noisy toys in baby Nicholas's future!). If I were to get started on Iain, he would steal the show, being at that especially cute age when firsts are still the norm and words (when decipherable) are sometimes even better than pictures.

Anna jumps

Anna spotted this activity as we were en route to old navy at the local mall. All the way to the store, Anna pleaded and cried, "I want to jump!!" So on the way back out, she got her wish. I don't know when I have ever spent $5 to such great effect. She loved it, despite getting a slow start. Thomas, on the other hand, wanted nothing to do with it. Maybe when I am 8 or 9, he reflected, I will be 'big enough' to jump. Still, he enjoyed watching Anna, from his safe vantage point on his daddy's shoulders!

Potty training success

Normally, I wouldn't dream of describing such things in the public domain. But one of Anna's areas of most difficulty has been potty training. She just hasn't shown any interest, and when Anna doesn't want to do something, she can be pretty stubborn. So a fight over the potty would never have worked. Tonight, however, we had an opportune moment (obvious signs of an Impending Potty-Event) to put her on the potty. I brought her favorite book on the subject, 'Sara's Potty', and Lewis read it to her. Before too long, she said, 'poot!' (Much cuter than 'poop', I think.) And so it was. Success!! But the best part was actually a few minutes later, when I was getting everyone into the tub. She resisted, and pulled away, heading for the potty. I thought it was a stalling tactic--but no! She needed to 'poot', and went to the potty entirely on her own initiative.



It has also been proved that Anna has heard all I have said about 'when you use the potty': I have promised her virtually anything she asks for. Soon after her Great Success, she looked at me and said, 'I want to watch Grinch.' She loved it more than anything over Christmas, and it took some convincing to get her to give it up in January so we could send it back to Netflix. Fortunately, our neighbors have a copy: Anna got her wish. She and her brothers got to watch 'How the Grinch Stole Christmas' on the eve of St Valentine's day.



This is a big milestone for Anna, and we hope that it signals the beginning of an interest in potty training. We certainly made a Big Deal about it for her, and Thomas was as excited as we were. He is a fantastic (developmentally 'older') brother when he wants to be. Of course we are not holding our breath for a speedy move to big girl underwear: like everything else with Anna, this will take time. Probably lots of time! If only I had a photo of the pleased look she had when everyone was cheering: it was priceless. Maybe next time....

Anna scoots!

Anna and the scooter are getting on famously. Her bike is still a little big, and the scooter (given to us by our friends next door, whose daughter is exactly the same age as Anna--really, born the same day!) has been just the thing. She rides round and round the patio table as Thomas bikes the same circuit.

Unfortunately, I don't have photos of the sponge-painting extravaganza yesterday afternoon. Anna and Thomas made valentines for their classmates, using red paint and heart-shaped sponges. Needless to say, they enjoyed the project, much more than they would have liked a trip to Target for the store-bought version. Thomas did pretty well at keeping clean, but Anna's hands and face were covered with paint by the time she was done. She displayed great iniative, however, when she was ready to move on: she got down from her chair and trotted off down the hall to wash her hands. I know I'll miss certain things about the toddler & preschool years, but a little more self-sufficiency on the part of all three children will come as a great relief!

Iain's days of discovery

Iain is enjoying being outside, now that the weather is more suitable. He has discovered Thomas's cricket bat, and--although he doesn't exactly know what to do with it--would not let it go! He has shown an early interest in any kind of outdoor sport, the best of which is his frisbee-throwing! It is little more than dropping at this point, but he will bring me the frisbee and make it clear he wants to play!
The sandbox has been replenished, much to the little one's delight. Iain must have spent 45 minutes this afternoon just playing with the sand. He endured having it poured down his back--courtesy of Anna--without a complaint. He's happy to leave the trucks to Thomas and Anna (see below). All he needs is a shovel and his two little hands. I suspect that the spring is going to involve a LOT of time outside.
Thomas and Iain played beautifully together for quite a long time. Eventually, of course, Thomas decided to hop back on his bike, and this lured Iain out of the sand. Anna has been a little under the weather--I didn't take a photo of her asleep in front of the Wiggles, though it might have been cute.

Anna's eyes are healing well, and much less bloodshot now. No crossing! So hopefully we'll have smooth sailing for a little while (knock on wood!).

snow, and more

Everybody enjoyed the snow! Iain experienced some frustration with his little mitts--he had such difficulty picking up the small shovel everytime he dropped it! Thomas threw his first snowballs, mostly at me, and was disappointed that there wasn't really enough snow to build a snowman. He announced this morning that he wished we lived in England. We were surprised by this revelation (since Thomas has never been to England); when pressed, he admitted tha the wanted to play in the snow as he had seen his favorite animated English characters (Kipper and Tiger, if these names are familiar to you) do. We'll wait and see.

Anna's eye surgery does seem to have been a success. Her opthamologist was pleased with the result; Anna's eyes are not crossing any more! Anna returns in March for a follow-up, when the doctor will determine whether Anna needs to continue to wear glasses. Again, we'll wait and see!

post-op news

Anna's eye surgery is over! We have to wait until Wednesday, when she is scheduled for a post-op visit to the opthamologist, to find out all the details. But she has recovered significantly this morning, and even asked for her glasses. She's still a bit puffy--the swelling has been made worse by the additional fluid she was given during the procedure. Some children do not need glasses following this type of surgery, but I suspect Anna will still wear them. After all, she has two parents who have worn glasses for many years.

I expect that by the end of the weekend I will have pictures of the kids playing in the snow: it has just begun to fall!