I Seriously Could Not Make This Up.

The kids are I are sitting outside yesterday, enjoying the beautiful fall weather and munching on our afternoon snack. We see a little white caterpillar (very fuzzy with a distinctive black stripe down its back) creeping by on the steps.



Cate and Ben are intrigued. They gaze at him intently. They want to poke him. They put a leaf in his path and watch what he does.



Ben says, "Step on caterpillar!"



And I immediately say, "Oh no Ben! We don't step on caterpillars. They're nice--remember "The Very Hungry Caterpillar"? Caterpillars turn into butterflies."



Ben considers this and says, "Kiss caterpillar."



He leans close to the caterpillar and when he stands up, he has one hand coveirng his mouth and is crying.



"Caterpillar hurt me," he says.



I look in his mouth. Did he swallow a bug? There was a leaf in close proximity to the very fuzzy caterpillar. Did he eat part of the leaf? I can't see anything alarming by looking in his mouth but his chin is becoming red and he is drooling profusely. He stops crying to take a drink of milk but then starts clutching his chin and whimpering.



After a visit to the ER we learned that some caterpillars (like the White-Marked Tussock Moth Caterpillar, for example) secrete toxins (!!!) which can result in dermatitis or even allergic reactions--basically a defense mechanism to protect otherwise defenseless caterpillars from predators.





Ben, unfortunately, must have leaned a bit too close to this nasty little thing and been zapped on mouth. Luckily after an hour of observation in the ER and a small dose of Benadryl the redness subsided, the swelling went down, the pain went away, and he seemed like his happy little self again.


As a result of this incident we've estabilshed a new rule at our house: NO kissing caterpillars. Ever.

In other news...

Not only did Ben successfully convince us that he has outgrown his crib today but he also counted to 10 AND went potty on the potty chair. Twice.

We praised him and did a crazy potty dance in the bathroom. We proceeded to spend a solid 10 minutes talking about what a "big boy" he was.

Then bedtime.

Things started out well. He cuddled with his animals and blanket on his mattress (which we had moved to the floor). We read stories. We sang songs. We told him it was time for bed and he needed to go to sleep. He smiled and said, "Good night Mama. Good night Daddy."

He was out of bed in less than 2 minutes. We tried the silent-no-emotion-no-talking-return-to-bed routine. For two hours.

We tried a baby gate in his doorway. He climbed over it.

Finally, at 10:15, we had to level with him.

"Buddy," we said. "It's your job to go to sleep. If you get out of your bed again, then we will have to shut the door."

"Okay," he said.

(One of the hardest parts about being a parent, in my experience, is actually having to follow through on these ubiquitous if/then statements. You say them knowing the entire time that your kids will test you but hoping that once, just this once, they won't. Mine always do).

We shut his door. He cried for 10 minutes. He went to sleep. Chris put him on his little mattress and tucked him in.


Needless to say, I'm dreading naptime tomorrow...we might just have to take the long way home from preschool.

Well.

I should have known something was up when I looked at the clock (8:00) and Ben still wasn't up yet.

But he had a hard time falling asleep last night and so I figured he was just tired.

In fact, he was plotting his escape.

Many of you remember my post from two months ago regarding Baby Houdini's daring escape from his crib and subsequent imprisonment in the World's Deepest Crib.

Well, apparently the World's Deepest Crib was not deep enough for our intrepid explorer who climbed out of bed and ran down the stairs shouting joyous "HI MOM!" at precisely 8:07 this morning.

Any advice about how to keep this kid in bed (and it looks like he's headed for a "big boy" bed) would be greatly appreciated...

The Truth...

I graciously offered to put the kids to bed tonight so that Chris could watch the Hawks take on Penn State.

Knowing they would not be pleased by his absence, especially if they realized that he was sitting downstairs, on the couch, watching tv, I tried (unsuccessfully) to deflect their inquiries about what, exactly, Daddy was doing.

Cate: What is Daddy doing?

Me: Well, he's busy but he'll come up to check on you in a few minutes.

Cate: But what is he doing?

Me: He's working on a project.

Cate (smiles knowingly): Oh, he's sitting on the potty with his Blackberry, right?

Overheard...

Cate: Ben, why don't you have a big penis? Is it because you are a little guy?

Being the Little Brother

Being the oldest of three children, I can honestly say that until Ben I had given very little thought to what it must be like to be the second (or third) child in a family. I never wondered how my brothers were impacted by my absence (or presence).

In general, as the oldest child (and only daughter) the world seemed to revolve around me. My schedule. My sports practices. My homework. My friends. My drama. Similarly, I see that in our daily lives much of our world revolves around Cate. Her preschool. Her playdates. Her gymnastics.

I think this is why I am often so touched when I realize how much Ben loves his big sister. Right now, Ben's life (for better or worse) does revolve around Cate. She is his best friend and (usually) his staunchest defender. He has attended every music and gymnastics class that she's ever been enrolled in. He prefers her to me and Chris. He laughs at her jokes and silly games. If she cries, he always asks her, "Better Cate?"

Today we were eating lunch while Cate was at school and we were talking about all of the things that Cate might be doing.

Ben: Cate play stamps.

Me: Yeah. Cate was playing stamps with her friends when we dropped her off at school today.

Ben: Who?

Me: Ella, Robert, and Katerina.

Ben: Why?

Me: Well, they're her friends.

Ben: Oh. Miss her.

Me: Me too, Buddy.

(Now I just need to remember how much he loves her when they are fighting over the plastic mop from the Dollar Store, resulting in Ben biting Cate on the finger and pulling out a chunk of her hair......not that anything like that has ever happened at my house...I'm just sayin').

Quality Time

Now that Cate is in preschool twice a week, I really try to spend that time focusing on Ben--especially since he will soon be The Middle Child.

Today we came home from drop-off and, as I was emptying the dishwasher I overheard him talking to himself and reading books.

I closed the dishwasher and walked into the other room.

"Ben," I asked. "Do you want Mommy to read to you?"

"NO!" was his reply. "Ben READ it BEN SELF."

The Latest Invention...

Me: Cate, do you call your new invention?

Cate: Super Fast Plantion(?) Telescope

Me: What do you do with it?

Cate: I play with it and you can look through it because it's a telescope.

Me: Where did you get the idea?

Cate: I got a tube and put a feather on it and then I got some paper and then I drawed on it. And that's how I got the idea.

Of Interest...

According to the Social Security Administration (SSA), these are the top ten baby names for 2008:

(Note: Rank 1 is most popular, rank 2 is next most popular, etc.)

BOYS:
1. Jacob
2. Michael
3. Ethan
4. Joshua
5. Daniel
6. Alexander
7. Anthony
8. William
9. Christopher
10. Matthew

GIRLS:
1. Emma
2. Isabella
3. Emily
4. Madison
5. Ava
6. Olivia
7. Sophia
8. Abigail
9. Elizabeth
10. Chloe

None of the names we are considering for Baby K #3 appear on either of the Top 10 lists. I'm honestly surprised that Ben(jamin) didn't crack the top ten--it seems there is always another Ben on any playground we're on.

According to the SSA, Benjamin was ranked #25 for boys in 2008 and Catherine (with a C) #149 for girls (Katherine was number #45).

(Also...if you're in the market for baby names there is a very cool tool on this site that allows you to enter a name and see how it's popularity has changed over time).

Yet another reason why I LOVE my neighborhood...

Naked Baby

I am in the kitchen and I hear Ben run into the room.

Without turning around I say, "Hi Buddy."

He replies, "Hi Mom."

I say, "What are you doin?"

He says, "Naked baby."

I turn around and he is naked. No shorts. No diaper. The only thing he's wearing is his t-shirt, which he's struggling to get over his head.

I sense this is a trick that will come back to haunt me at some point in the future...

And (finally) the After...

BEFORE (This isn't really a fair comparison since this picture was taken before we moved in and doesn't contain any of our things).



AFTER (Note the fabulous 1960's, solid walnut, mid-century modern table and chairs that we found on Craigslist. I LOVE it and it looks even better in person).







DETAILS:







My mom helped me make these fantastic silhouettes of the kids. (Yes, we left a space for Baby K. I tried to use Sadie as a temporary space holder but, frankly, her silhouette is not very aesthetically pleasing).

An oil painting that we bought in Spain a million years ago (Before Kids. When we actually traveled internationally and had some disposable income...)






The Smokebrush Pendant...the picture just doesn't do it justice. Feel free to come over and bask in its glow.


Next project: Baby K's room

Heading for a Meltdown (and this one was Mommy's)

I pride myself on being able to take my kids (almost) anywhere by myself. I have a pretty good sense of where our limits begin and end. I respect mealtimes and naptimes. I travel with snacks and small toys. I try to stay two steps ahead of them in order to ward off extreme hunger, thirst, tiredness and crabbiness.

Today I met my match at the Iowa Children Museum's annual fundraiser "Move It! Dig It! Do It!" After today I really think that the tickets should come with a disclaimer. Something along the lines of "1:1 adult/child ratio strongly recommended" or "If you are pregnant, and it's a hot day, but you're still thinking about bringing your children to this event without your spouse or another adult, you might be slightly crazy."

Things started out pretty well. Cate and Ben took turns selecting activities. We sat in a concrete mixer (a dream come true for Ben) and several other "diggers." We spent 20 solid minutes making crafts with Elmer's glue, birdseed, and colored sand. We petted the puppies and horses and then combed the cows (I know, it seemed strange to me too). We ate lunch and talked about everything we'd seen.

I felt pretty confident at this point. Keeping track of two active preschoolers at a crowded outdoor event like this requires constant vigilance. I figured we'd hit the sand pile, run through the city bus, pick up our concrete garden stones and call it a day.

Then as we were coming out of the restroom Cate and Ben realized that they were giving horse and buggy rides and begged to go for a ride. In a moment of weakness, I hesitated. I then tried to convince them that the line was too long, it was too hot, we wouldn't have time to do anything else, etc.

They were unconvinced.

So we joined the massive throng of people waiting in line for the one poor horse whose job it was to ferry kids and their caregivers around the fairgrounds.

And we waited.

And waited.

I pulled out every trick (okay, bribe) in my aresenal to convince Cate that we should move onto something else. I almost offered to buy her a pony of her very own.

Since Chris wasn't with us, Cate had to stay within my line of vision and Ben had to stay within grabbing distance. Not an easy task.

We waited for approximately 50 minutes in the blazing sun. The kids were great. They stayed relatively close and didn't whine or complain.

Being pregnant, thirsty, sweaty, and trying to keep track of two kids, one stroller, two yellow plastic construction hats, four sand-art projects, one bouncy ball, and two sippy cups...well, let's just say that if it were not considered socially unacceptable for a grown woman to throw herself on the ground and cry I might have considered it.

Finally we made it on the horse ride and (with the help of my good friend Deb) arrived back at the minivan without any casualties. It was 2:45. It was clear that no one was going to be napping today. Unable to face the thought of a long endless afternoon at home with two kids who--although angelic up to this point--were bound to get crabby eventually I was forced to make a tough decision:

Home or the Dairy Queen.

I had a butterscotch shake. I think I earned it.

I Love Iowa City

When I was in grad school, I couldn't wait to get out of Iowa City. To go someplace bigger. Better.


Now that I have kids, I can't imagine living anywhere else.


Iowa City is, quite simply, a phenomenal place for kids. Today was "Kid's Day" at the weekly Farmer's Market and we had a great time. Some highlights: eating egg rolls, listening to the library story time, sitting in a fire engine AND an ambulance...



Making a tie-dye handkerchief




Putting beans in bags to watch them grow







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CUPCAKES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

In Defense of Food

I recently finished reading Michael Pollan's book, "In Defense of Food: An Eater's Manifesto." Cate saw the book sitting on the counter and asked me what it was about.

I tried to explain Pollan's thesis using the simplest terms possible.

"Well," I began. "He writes about how it's important to eat food--real food--like fruits and veggies but that we shouldn't eat too much."

Cate thought about this and said, "Why?"

"It's not healthy to overeat," I replied. "It's not good for our tummies if we eat too much."

Cate wrinkled her nose, "But MOM, sometimes we're just really hungry."

Luckily Michael Pollan did not have Cate for an editor...

Lollipops for Strength

Cate (after eating a sour apple flavored Dum Dum): This is how I'm going to grow big and strong.

And one for posterity...

Cate and Ben, with their respective godfathers, trying on the "funny hats" (aka Army issue berets)

California Girl

Birthday Gifts

A few days before we left for California, Cate presented me with a birthday card the she had made herself.

On the envelope she had painstakingly spelled out "MOM" and printed her name below.

This is one envelope that I will treasure forever.

Adventures in California Living

We were fortunate to spend the long holiday weekend in California with my parents and brothers (aka "the uncles). We hadn't seen my brother, Devin, since Christmas (nor had my immediate family been together since Christmas).


Some highlights from our trip:



Uncle Devo's graduation from the Defense Language Institute in Monterey, CA (This also marked the last time we will see Uncle Mikey in uniform as he is officially out of the Army in October).












Building sand castles at the ocean

Visiting the Monterey Bay Aquarium

Celebrating my 32nd birthday, at my Uncle Steve's house in Walnut Creek, CA, with my favorite people in the world