September Small Things

Just another day riding bikes, playing with chalk, and looking nice and sweaty this hot summer.

 We discovered a fun splash pad in Cortland.

 Said goodbye to dad as he left for a conference over labor day weekend. We actually said bye at the curb, but he forgot his headphones, and because I'm an amazing wife, I ran home and got them and came inside the airport (all in our jammies) to give them to him because he could not leave the security area. A nice security guard took them to him. Good thing the Ithaca airport is so small and that we live so close.

 The kids put chocolate chips and mini marshmallows in their pancakes on Calendar Changing Day (the first day of the month) to make them a little more special.

 We ate Little Ceasars pizza while watching the skateboarders do their thing for dinner one day while Darin was gone. It was a loooong Saturday with these two. Sometimes they really like to pull out all the stops.

 Life according to my phone when the kids are the ones behind the camera:

 "Get over here now so I can do your hair," Is most likely what I was saying, definitely thinking.

 Half-birthday waffles for our big 3.5 year old! She got three dollars to spend how she wanted and was so excited to get two little Disney dolls, Anna and Tiana, because "they rhyme!" I may have contributed a few extra dollars in the end because she was so smitten by them.

 She's really in to asking to have her picture taking lately. At Wegmans, "Take my picture with the lobsters!" (Also, can we just talk about how much easier grocery shopping is with just one kid? No more, "She's touching me!" "That's my seat!" or other loud crazy shenanigans--thank goodness).

At Target, "Take a picture of me! I Poppy!"

While trying on bathing suits with me at Target. "Take a picture of this bee-u-tify bathing suit."

 She woke up fine, then had me hold her at the playground during an hour of playgroup before I brought her home and she fell right to sleep on the couch. Clear sign of a sick kiddo.

 Weekend hike up Cascadilla gorge. We hiked it last year and got donuts at Dunkin Donuts at the top, and of course the kids didn't forget that. The donuts motivated them all the way to the top. Needless to say, everyone was pretty disappointed when we got to the top and learned that it was no longer there!

 

 "Take a picture of Shae, okay?" I mean, she sort of did right?

 Hard to tell, but I came out of the back while she was doing quiet time to find her brushing her hair with a fork. Clear sign that we had recently watched The Little Mermaid.

 One day at the mall, outside of Claire's, "Mom, take my picture!"

 "Now I take yours picture." (She pluralizes your every. single. time. and I still think it's so cute). She's gettin' good at her picture taking skills.

 Making her tractor after the tractor themed story time.

 Airport day that the aiport. Although we didn't get to go on any airplanes, just see them from a far, there were a lot of fun firetrucks and SWAT trucks to check out. 

 We finally tried the brick oven pizza at the Farmer's Market! SO GOOD.

 Fun lunch date with this big kindergartner. I loved meeting some of the friends that I always hear about.

 Darin downloaded Pokemon Go to play occasionally with the kids. I may have been just a leeetle annoyed at first, because do we really need MORE Pokemon in our lives? It is all Shae talks about these days. But he uses it sparingly and it has turned in to some good dad-bonding time for them if and when we ever visit campus (one of the few places Darin gets internet service and can actually play it, haha). Although hearing about it all day long drives me bonkers, it really is cute how excited they get about it.

 Listening to Shae sing "Mother Gooney Bird" for the umpteeth time on his stage. 

 Giving dad his bday cards.

 Bday date hike at Buttermilk Falls. 

 And then the most amazing burgers at Ithaca Ale House.

 I am no food photographer, so you'll just have to take my word for it that this Pumpkin White Chocolate Mousse Cheesecake and these Caramel Apple Cheesecake Streusal Bars were out of this world good. (I made two desserts because we had some friends over, not because I am obsessed with fall desserts and cheesecake everything--obviously).

 My last softball game, finally! I really enjoyed playing again this year, but the season was supposed to be over mid August, but then there were so many rain outs that it just kept going and going. Most of us were just ready to be done by the end. We came in second place in our division! I'm pretty excited to not have to put on that uniform again. Not the purttiest. 

 When she finds the diaper wipes laying around, this is what you will find. I can't be frustrated at her for pulling so many out though, they are one of her favorite "toys."

 Afternoon apple picking at Grisamore.

School Days

Both kids started school last month. Shae started the Wednesday after labor day. On Tuesday, they had a little meet and greet in the different classrooms. 

Belén sure did have fun playing in the dress up/kitchen make believe area. She was in heaven and I'm sure was thinking, "When do I get to go to kindergarten?"

 She also made sure to check out all the cool places in the school library (which I of course had to check out).

 His teacher was very nice. Shae loved seeing his name on his cubby, and the birthday chart, and a few other places throughout the room.

 He was incredibly excited to wake up that first day of school. I was feeling all the emotions that whole week (what if he can't find his class? what if someone is mean to him? what if he is mean to someone? what if he sees that other kids have a cooler lunch than him? have I taught him enough!!??--and about a million other questions). But his excitement was contagious, I couldn't not be excited as well.

And just like that, he boarded the bus and was off.

 She walked home with me, and was clearly the happiest girl in the world. A little freedom from her brother was definitely something that this girl needed. And honestly, it was actually quite a nice first day of him being gone. So much less contention and so much more quiet. I felt a little bad for enjoying it so much.

Shae really enjoyed those first few days and then after the first week he started asking, "I have to go AGAIN." He still seems to like it a lot and has only tried to pull the "I don't feel well" card once thus far, but he has said he is a bit bored at times too and doesn't like seeing when kids do bad things or don't listen. The bus ride seems a bit long for him too. 

Belén is going to the same preschool Shae went to last year. It did not start until the end of September because it is part of the vocational school for the high schoolers. They always give the high schoolers a few weeks of instruction before starting the preschool.

She started the last week of September with a Meet and Greet Tea Party that the parents were invited to stay for as well.

She sure makes getting a "good" picture of her hard. But she wouldn't be my spunky 3-year-old Belén if she didn't.

"Look at my pirate face mom. Aaarrrgggg matey."

  Not shown in the below picture: How excited she was to be at her preschool. "MY preschool, not Shae's," she reminded us over and over again.

 

A few little stories from Shae's first month of school:

He kept coming home with just about his entire lunch intact. When we asked why he wasn't eating it he said, "I just don't have time." We said, "You get 30 minutes, what do you during that 30 minutes?" He said, "It's hard to stop talking to my friends..."

They had a 15 minutes early release last week. I had it on my calendar, and even received a reminder call from the school the night before, and yet, the day of, I totally spaced it! At 2:30 I went to go to the bus stop with Belen like we do everyday. I grabbed my phone on the way out and saw that I had a bunch of missed calls and a couple voicemails. I listened to the message saying that the bus had come and was now on the way back to the school with Shae still on the bus since I wasn't there to get him. Ahhh! I was so embarrassed! How did I forget!? We quickly got in the car and went to get him. I ended up receiving calls from 4 different people (the bus driver, the bus assistant, the bus depot lady, and the school secretary), all asking me if I knew it was a 15 minutes early release day. Well yes, but....  I grabbed Shae and told him how sorry I was and then told him how embarrassed I felt. He said, "I feel embarrassed too... for you mom." 

We get to hear ALL the fun school songs. I hope it never stops (although inevitably I know it will). Mother Gooney bird, A tooty ta ta, there was an old lady who swallowed a fly (in his opera voice), it's the best.

One day I was going through his day with him trying to get more info out of him about what they do each day. While talking about what they do when school first starts Shae said, "We just play table toys, and then someone comes on the speaker and we all stand up and stare at the flag." Took me a second to realize he was talking about the Pledge of Allegiance, haha. 

We've started sharing our pits and peeks for the day over dinner. The second day of school Shae says, "Well, I had 9 pits today. First, I missed my family while I was at school." Cue my heart melting. Wish I could remember the other 8, I think they were mostly about pokemon and being bored.

The day I picked him up at school for being a neglectful parent, we decided to hang out and play on the playground a bit (Belen is always begging me to play there). While there, Shae mentioned a few toys over in the sand/dirt area that he wasn't allowed to play with right now. I asked a few questions which led to him telling me that he wasn't allowed to play with them for 5 days since him and little group of other kids started throwing the toys over the gate into the road. (What?! Why would you think that was a good idea?! -- Words going through my head when he told me). We had a good talk about it (peer pressure, hello! and already? really?).

During the first few days we read The Kissing Hand. We made sure to kiss each other's hands so we could touch our cheek and feel close to the other person while they were gone. It was so sweet one day when he got off the bus and told me he missed me and touched his hand to his cheek during the day. 

While making class rules as a class, Shae was, of course the one that asked how Pokemon cards fit in to the rules. His teacher said that they are allowed to pull them out for 10 minutes at the end of the day. We talked to her at curriculum night and she told us that there is a little group of them (the principal apparently calls them the Pokemon club, which Shae thinks is SO cool), and they are really good at only taking them out when they are supposed to and then putting them away when they are supposed to. 

While reading No, David! one day, we get to the page where David is sucking on a bar of soap for saying a bad word. Shae sullenly says, "I said a bad word today." In my head again: WHAT!? Already! You're never going back to school! I asked him what word he said and he was too embarrassed to tell me. I'm thinking all the different curse words he could have said in my head and ask, "Well, what letter does it start with?" I also remind him I won't be mad at all. He said, "It starts with and "i." An I? "Did you say," I whisper, "Idiot?" "No, it wasn't that." Well what was it bud?" He says, "I said 'If you don't play it the way I want to play, then I won't play." Phew, I took a deep breath. Not a very nice thing to say, but not at all what I had been imagining.