Uncle Brad

Zoe recognizes the holidays as a time for her to see her family. She remembers Thanksgiving and how grandparents and her uncle Brad came for a visit. As we talked about Chanukah and what this holiday means to us, Zoe started asking us to call various family members to come visit. 

For the past three days, anytime we sit down for a meal, she points around the table and tells us where each person can sit when they come to have Chanukah and latkas with us. The only thing that has stayed consistent about her seating chart is that she wants uncle Brad to be sitting next to her. In her words, "I want uncle Brad here because I love him." A very special uncle and a very special relationship. 

Gotta Move

Mia is a kid on the move. Whenever someone is supporting her arms or hands she tries to jump up and down and whenever she's in a highchair she tries to dance, rocking back and forth. Today, she was in a highchair carefully buckled in, and she started rocking back and forth and swinging her feet. We thought she was dancing. Apparently, she was pulling a Houdini. In slow motion, it felt like, Scott and Zoe and I turned to look at her as she stood straight up in the highchair somehow eluding the still buckled belt. She was quite pleased with herself. We were amazed. I guess she was done eating?

First time on the potty

Tonight we had a special holiday dinner, lit candles, and opened presents. Afterwards, we went up stairs for bath time and bed time. Zoe and Mia usually bathe together, but tonight Mia was going to get a head start while Zoe played a few more minutes. Well, Zoe was lucky indeed. Shortly after Mia was delightedly splashing in the tub, I hear the infamous call from Scott..."code brown!". It turns out, she was just getting started thankfully. I swooped her out of the tub and put her right on the toilet.

She could not have been happier. She sat there gripping the handles on the potty seat, swinging her legs and laughing. She went both in the toilet and I had to pry her off eventually because she didn't want to leave the potty party she had started. I've never wanted a video recorder more. Rubber ducky = $3.00. 12 pack of Charmin Ultra Soft = $5.29. Watching an 11-month old go to the bathroom on a toilet while trying to dance = priceless. 

Chanukah and Thumb Update

This is the first night of Chanukah that I think Zoe really fully understands. We lit candles, made latkas, and opened a present. Zoe was so excited and in a really happy mood, especially after painting at her friend Connor's.  The festive lights and train we visited in the neighborhood also elevated her spirits. That is, until she realized how overtired she was after having not napped and asked to go to bed without any books. She was still happy and cuddly; just spent.

Mia spent most of her evening drooling because she has new teeth coming in. She's also tried several times to climb the little mound of holiday presents, which usually ends with her in a silly heap on the floor. She is saying 'mama' and 'dada' with more regularity now and getting much more deliberate about standing unassisted. This comes in handy since she's also regularly trying to reach and pull on things that are just a little bit too high from her sitting position. 

On the sock mitten front, Zoe continues to be very interested but also somewhat ambivalent in relinquishing her thumb/mouth relationship. Night time appears much easier than nap time. At night, she wants a little oil on her hand and her sock mittens and she falls asleep relatively quickly. In the morning, she is still eager (after three nights of this) to show us her hands with the mittens still on and how her skin looks (i.e., not chapped and red). Then she trots in to our office and wants a smiley face on the white board. At nap time however it takes her much longer to fall asleep and she eventually yanks the mittens off. I don't know if she ends up sucking her thumb then or only when we come in. Then, she'll say something like "no smiley face and I don't want my nails painted". I tell her that's fine. She doesn't need either and we don't need to worry about her thumb. I tell her we just want to make sure we keep her skin from getting too chapped. I can tell she really wants to quit, but it's hard. I was a thumb sucker too and a nail biter and I remember how hard it was to stop biting my nails. I feel for ya Zoe; it sucks, literally.

Belly Crawling

Ok, for the 2nd night in a row I'm doing a belly crawl in to Zoe's room to see if the mitten's are still on. Naptime was a bust (in terms of using the mittens) because she refused to nap. She had a few moments today where her thumb wandered up and found her mouth, but she seemed to quickly realize what she was doing and pulled it out. Instead of the band-aid working as a reminder for her, I seem to be the reminder. She sees me looking at her and pulls her thumb out and then smiles really broadly. She's been telling every one who will listen today that she has sock mittens...and oil...and sock mittens...and oil...and she didn't suck her thumb last night because there's nail polish...and she wants toes and fingers...and she's going to get a smiley face...and when she gets three there's nail polish...and she has sock mittens...and oil...and you get the picture.

Well, back to the belly crawling....here's what I found...

Imagine me singing "awesome" while you look at that picture. Ellen, if I had half your skill, I'd have inserted a little arrow pointing to the beautiful sock mitten still perfectly intact on her sleeping self with nothing hanging out of her mouth. I should not care this much about this, but it is a real relief to me that we may see the end of thumb sucking one day.

By the way, when we realized that both kids were serial thumb suckers, Scott and I were having a chat about it in the car while commuting in to work together one day. As is typical, we were in bumper to bumper traffic, and just as Scott said something like, "it's similar to potty training, you never see a bride walk down the aisle in a diaper," we looked at the car next to us where a 40+ year old woman was eagerly sucking her thumb and stroking her nose with her free pointer finger. Super.

Totally unrelated, Zoe also started drawing stick figure people this week. I need to scan one of those for prosperity. I used to do art therapy and I keep half expecting her to draw one of those whacked out figures with no eyes floating at the top of the page, but so far, pretty healthy drawings. I guess the thumb sucking isn't causing major issues...

Mittens

Zoe and Mia both suck their thumbs. They've been doing this since my earliest introductions to each of them during sonograms. I could hardly get a sonogram print of them not sucking their thumbs. I suppose I'm lucky. It's meant that they have been able to "self soothe" to some extent. Also, they each only do it when they're falling asleep and at times when they're tired, cranky or bored. Ok, that could be a lot of the time, but it's actually not that much. 

For Zoe, bedtime is the most active thumb time for her. The dentist and pediatrician have both encouraged us to pretty much ignore it. That's really hard for me to do, but I try. Lately though the skin on her thumb and hand has started getting really chafed from the combo of cold weather and thumb sucking. There's very little to help heal the skin when she puts her hand in her mouth. Another mom told me that her thumb sucking kid actually sucked the skin and thumb nail off his thumb which totally freaked me out.

At first, Zoe and I talked about what she could do as a reminder to stop sucking her thumb and agreed that she'd ask for a band-aid to cover her thumb to help remind her to take it out of her mouth. That hasn't worked because if she's sucking her thumb, I'll ask her if she needs a band-aid reminder, but if she says no (most days), I say ok and don't push at all. Strike One.

Then, I started talking to her about having a thumb booboo, and how she needs to take care of it just like she takes care of the rest of her body like eating when she's hungry, using the bathroom, etc.  I would try to catch her not sucking her thumb during story time, etc., and praise her for doing a good job taking care of herself.  She loved the praise, but loved her thumb more. Strike Two.

She is very interested in polished nails, so I next told her that as soon as she stopped sucking her thumb for 3 days in a row, we'd paint her nails any color she wanted. That was exciting to her, but apparently not quite motivating enough. Strike Three. I give up.

So, today, I called the pediatrician to ask what can I put on her thumb to help heal it that is ok if she puts it in her mouth. I had zero interest in working on the sucking part of the issue. The nurse gave me a long song and dance however about all the things I should be doing to help her quit sucking her thumb, and I politely told her that I wasn't worried about kicking the thumb habit at this particular moment, I just wanted to help her heal her skin. The nurse, who was pretty snarky, told me that the only thing I could try was olive oil. That no other product would be remotely safe if ingested.

So tonight I told Zoe that we'd try olive oil at night time to help her heal her thumb skin. I asked her what we could do to help make sure that she didn't suck all the oil off before it had a chance to help her, and we agreed that she could wear some sock mittens. Then I told her I needed to paint my nails, and she was welcome to hang out with me and watch before bed time. The stars aligned. She spent half the time watching me paint my nails and half the time begging to have the oil and mittens on her hand right away because she wanted to stop sucking her thumb so she could have her nails painted. We put a note on the whiteboard that tonight would be the 1st of her 3 nights without thumb sucking on her road to having her own nails painted. 

I just peeked in her room, and...drum roll please...the mittens are still on!! Zoe, you did it! Night #1 without thumb sucking!!

I was so excited, I took the risk of a flash waking you up and took a picture of you sleeping sock mittens in tact.

Zoe Quote

The scene: It's bedtime. I've just put Mia down. Scott's read Zoe books and I'm coming in to say good night.

Zoe: Mom, let's talk about my day, get a hug and a kiss and then get out because I need to sleep. 

It's Not Stinky

The context: When Mia was born, we were prepared for Zoe to have a reaction. We figured that there would be times that she felt unhappy about some of the changes. So, whenever Zoe seemed notably out of sorts, I'd say something like, "Zoe, is today one of those days when it stinks to have a sister." When I said that, the storm often passed. We assumed it helped her know that any feelings were ok. Who knows what works and what doesn't, but this seemed to work at the time. I haven't used that line with any regularity in at least eight months.

This morning when Zoe and Mia awoke before the roosters, we huddled them in to our bed hoping that they'd doze a little longer. Zoe curled up next to Mia between Scott and I and held her hand. After a few seconds of quiet she said, "Mommy it's good to have a sister. It's not stinky to have a sister. Thank you." 

It was just the best. 

Latest Interests

A few mornings ago, Zoe surprised us by waking up and announcing that she wanted to wear the dress with the funny hat. She was talking about a dress-up outfit my mom had brought last month. I have no idea how she had that on her mind when she woke up or even how she remembered it since we had put it in the closet and not looked at it or talked about it in weeks. We talked about how the outfit was different, e.g., for play/dress-up and not for school, and she was very happy as long as she could put it on, look in the mirror and twirl around. 

This was a totally different reaction from when we brought her home a set of wings and a wand. Scott and I carried these things all over China and on the plane the whole way home because they were impossible to pack. She took one look at them and thoroughly rejected them. We'll see if she ever asks for the funny wings again. If not, I may just wear them.

Swimming has also seen a resurgence in popularity. For a few weeks, Zoe wasn't too thrilled about it because we were taking lessons at a new pool that was pretty cold and she missed her old teacher. Well, thanks to a warmer swim suit and a cool teacher, she's been having fun in the pool. Look at those straight kicking legs. 

Taking Turns

The humidifier has been in Zoe's room the last few nights. Tonight, we moved it in to Mia's room. Zoe was not happy about this change. Apparently she'd been enjoying the humidifier. So, when I went in to her room at bedtime for our nightly "let's talk about our day," she said "mommy, let's first talk about the humidifier and then we can talk about our day." She wanted to make sure I understood that she wanted the humidifier in her room. I told her that we needed to take turns with the humidifier between her room and Mia's room. Her response: "Ok, I can have it for 3 nights and then Mia can have it for 5 minutes." Super. That'll work.

NaBloPoMo Ends

Today is the last day of November and therefore the last day of NaBloPoMo. Overall, I enjoyed participating. It encouraged me to think more about my days and to be even more observant for moments worth noting. I learned that there aren't that many major episodes but that there are dozens each day that I could write about. 

• Mia continues to wake before 5:30 am
  
• Zoe is using her manners really consistently
  
• My dog was diagnosed with Cushing's Disease
  
• Mia has changed her crawl to where she now swings one leg around, clearly wanting to move from a higher altitude than crawling
  
• Zoe's lip is fine 
  
• My dog can no longer hear well
  
• Scott is catching up on work but about to travel again
• We rented Iron Man this weekend

Even better though, when something is tough, blogging is a good place to get a bit of release and find support. Thanks for reading my blog this month and thanks for being so supportive when I've shared something challenging for me or momentous for my family.

Cycles

It seems like our life operates as a series of eat, sleep, and play routines with a smattering of personal hygience events tossed in (kids, dog, and ours).

5/6 am-wake up (bathroom, brush teeth, change clothes, make bed)/Mia nurse/walk dog
Play
7:30/8am-breakfast
9am-Mia nap/Zoe play or school
10:30 am-Mia nurse
Play/school
12/12:30-lunch
1/1:30-naps
Play/Mia nurse
6-dinner/Mia nurse
7/7:30 bed (bathroom, brush teeth, change clothes, bath)/Mia nurse/walk dog

Additional dog walking throughout the day and evening.

It can be a little monotonous at times. Although on other days, we can be humming through our cycles and right in the middle of a personal hygiene moment like hand washing, Zoe can lose her balance and split her lip on the sink. This is what happened today. There's something to be said for monotony.

Thanksgiving

Zoe and Mia are two delighted little people after a week of family festivities for Thanksgiving. They both warmed up really easily to our family and friends who came by to share the holidays with us. Zoe was a real trooper given that she wasn't feeling very well most of the week. Despite a nasty cough, she played easily, ate well, and took her naps. Bless you Zoe. The only time I can think of that I got any push-back was when I asked her to say hello to someone that had come over for brunch. She walked over to him, and then turned around and came back to me and whispered in my ear, "but mommy, I don't know that man." Good girl. I like your stranger radar. She was flexible enough that when I told her that he was a good friend of mommy and daddy's and grandpa Ed's, she said "ok" and later they played some together.

Mia was eager to crawl and stand anywhere near people or near objects that she could stick in her mouth. She continues to teeth a lot. She's also trying to perfect her standing skills. Now she's trying to stand independently with objects in both hands (and sometimes in her mouth too).

Thank you to the Levines and the Sirkins for sharing the holidays with us. We know that people typically hate traveling over this week, and we were so glad that you chose to come again. We enjoyed having you. 

CulinAerie

CulinAerie (pronounced "cull-in-air-e") is a food and wine instruction kitchen on 14th street in DC founded by two chefs, Susan and Susan. Scott designed the space which consists of one very large instruction kitchen with flat screen TV's, dozens of Kitchen Aid mixers, beautiful commercial kitchen ranges, and other amenities to help participants create along with the instructor. There is another more intimate room that is geared to smaller parties of 10 or so, also with a flat screen TV so participants can see down in to the instructors pans while she's cooking. Then, there's the back of house and storage spaces needed. 

Scott and I took our families there the day before Thanksgiving so they could see the space and ooh and aah over Scott's fantastic design and also so we could prep some of our Thanksgiving meal without the fuss and muss of shopping for the ingredients and cleaning up the pots and pans. While we get a short demo and begin our cooking (all of which has been nicely prepped for us in advance), we nibble on gourmet appetizers and drink wine. 

We made a vegetarian curry butternut squash soup, buttermilk biscuits, cauliflower in a mustard sauce and braised fennel, and pumpkin bread pudding with raisins and pecans and a vanilla sauce. Yum! 

PS- Milk moms...could be a fun MNO? Guests typically eat a meal while they do a demo and then take home their goods or eat them there.

Thanksgiving Visit

Zoe and Mia had fun time with their grandparents today. Grandpa Steven treated Zoe to some summersault instruction. By the end, she was doing them from a standing position as though she were diving off a diving board. Mia was all giggles and eager to be held and played with.

Mia 10 Months Old

Mia, you are 10 months old today. My instinct is to quickly say "I can't believe it!", but the truth is, I can. While the first six months of your life flew by for me in the blink of an eye, these last four months have been a bit more leisurely, and we've had a chance to really notice all your growth and change.

You are a happy and curious girl, and also a busy one. This month you perfected the art of clapping and banging objects together. Your crawl is top notch and you even take on stairs now. Going up you have down pat; we're working on going down. You easily pull up to a stand and can cruise around a "tiny bit" as Zoe likes to say. And, on a few occasions you've managed to stand all on your own like an island in the middle of the living room or kitchen. It's only when you look around and realize that no one is holding you up that you plop down. You especially like to pull up to a stand on the lighter-weight, can't-be-secured-to-a-wall bar stool which freaks me out. But you seem to know your capability and there's been no drama yet. Could you please though stop putting your fingers in drawers to help you pull up? Those things like to slide shut.

You are also a talker. You love to babble, click your tongue, and make spit bubbles. You also like to smack your lips and make them vibrate. You say "mamamamama" and "dadadadada" and "bbbbbbbb" a lot but we're not ready to count them as first words. Close, but not quite yet.

This month we saw three new teeth reveal themselves. You've been a real teether and frozen grapes have provided your little gums lots of comfort. You have a lot more hair now and it's in a style very similar to your sisters. Your cradle cap is almost completely gone too. You have bright, eager, smiling eyes and the "moret" pug nose. And, you were an amazing champ at the doctors office for both your nine month well visit and your flu shot. You hardly cried when you got your shots, and I didn't cry when they did your measurements or when they did shots, which I seemed to do a lot at Zoe's early appointments. 

This has been a month with lots of new foods too. This month you enjoyed almost everything we introduced you to. Honeydew, canteloupe, eggplant (didn't love this as much at first), grapes, whole wheat pasta, green bell pepper, veggie burger, olive oil, corn, kiwi and mushrooms were each on your menu at some point (plus whatever you managed to pick up off the floor without me seeing you in time). You experiment with using a spoon and manage quite nicely when the food is a little pressed down in to it. You also practice drinking from a small shot glass which appears to be just the right size. Cup practice often appropriately proceeds bath time. In a typical day, you eat three meals, and breastfeed five times.

I'd have to say that you sleep well. You start focusing on sleep early and need a bit of comforting at night until we put you down around 7 pm. You flop in to bed eager to fall asleep. You wake up quite early usually, but will tolerate staying in your crib, usually, until close to six a.m. This is a work in progress. You take two naps a day: morning around 8:30/9 a.m. and again around 1 p.m.

We had fun celebrating Halloween and Zoe's birthday this month and preparing for Thanksgiving. You also had special visits from Grandma Barbara, Grandpa Ed, Grandma Bette, Grandpa Steven and Uncle Brad.

I'd say that's one heck of a month. Love you little gal.

Nothing to Report

I thought that closer to the end of the day I'd have something I felt like noting. But, I don't so I won't. Ta.

Simple Cute Stuff and Party Update

When I was little I am told that I used to clap my hands whenever anyone brought me food. This makes sense to me. There are times even today when a really nice meal at the right time inspires a desire to applaud. Tonight, when I brought Mia over some squash and put a piece in her mouth, she clapped. It's certainly not a habit at this point, and I'm not saying it's genetic, but it really was cute.

And Zoe continues to work on her sense of humor. One example. For the past few nights, she's called for me in a panic-stricken voice. When I go to her, I learn that she's called me in to help her readjust her covers. Not cool. So, each day we've spent a few minutes practicing pulling covers up and reinforcing that this is something she can do on her own during the night. When I went to put her to bed tonight, I asked her what she was going to do if she needed her covers pulled up tighter during the night. She started laughing so hard she could hardly utter, "mama, mama, dada, dada, I need help with my covers." Hee Hee. Then she laid down and pulled her own covers up. 

And, on the party update. There were four kids total, which I think is a nice amount, and the woman organizing it had put together many presents for the little girl we were celebrating. I was so glad I had an appropriate present. There was no cake. No one ever asked me about one either, and they did offer some ice cream. So, I'm still assuming that her original question was about whether we should have one at all. I just can't wrap my mind around even the possibility that she was asking me to bring one. Zoe had a decent time and the little girl celebrated felt special which is the point. 

Party

This afternoon we're invited to a big sister party. Another family at Zoe's school had a child, and friends of theirs are hosting essentially a play date to celebrate the older daughter. I think we're supposed to make crafts or something that the older daughter can use to participate in the care of the new child, like decorating bibs. It's actually a really nice idea and will hopefully help the new big sister, who is having a bit of a tough time, acclimate and feel special and attended to.

Anyway, the organizing friend sent me a few notes this week suggesting presents I could bring and asking me about bringing a cake. Her language could have gone two ways: either she was asking me to bring a cake or she was asking me if I thought she should bring a cake. I've never met her, Zoe's been at this school about 2 months, and we've played with the new big sister on 2 or 3 occasions. I'm going to assume that she was asking me whether she should bring a cake. We'll see what happens...(I did get a cute gift though.)

Discovery

Sometimes, I am totally surprised at what comes out of Zoe's mouth. I can't imagine what her thinking process was like. Tonight, I went in to kiss her good night after reading Library Lion and Llama Llama Mad at Mama, and this is what I hear...

"Mom, some men and boys have beards. Some women and girls, like you, wear bras, like yours." 

Then she tries to get a peek of my bra. She also lifts her shirt to show me her boobies pointing confidently on either side of her belly button.

Imagination

Zoe's has been working overtime lately and it's super fun. One quick example. Last week, she rolled out of bed, walked in to my office upstairs, took my briefcase and told us that she needed to start packing for a trip. She told us that we were all going to Miami where the Dolphins are. From there, she started filling my briefcase with the essentials...pencils, mardi gras beads, etc. She said that her remaining supplies were downstairs. Off we went. There were critical and less critical supplies. She gathered up toilet paper and tissues, blocks, more mardi gras beads (thanks Michelle and Julie), her doctor's kit, and on and on. She then reconfigured the ottomans in the living room, defined them as her airplane and began loading her cargo. Everyone at home got on the plane, and off to Miami we went. Great trip. Super low fare.  

NaBloPoMo Update and Mia Bedtime Routine

When I committed to posting every day this month, I expected to be writing nonsense haiku's like:

Boredom setting in

Complacent posting beware

More days to go

I thought it would be a huge struggle to think of what to write about. With Zoe's birthday, Scott's extra travel, and the upcoming holidays and family visits not to mention all the amazing growth and development Mia and Zoe have been experiencing, there has been plenty to chat about. 

So, one tidbit about Mia for today. Mia is hilarious at night time. She is usually fussy starting around 5:30 pm and primarily wants to be with me. She is happy if she's being nursed or having dinner, but otherwise she is often not in the mood to play. Dinner time is fun though. She loves eating with her hands and practicing her pincer grasp. Bathtime is a whine-free reprieve, and she expends considerable energy trying to stand up in the tub before Scott or I can restrain her. Then she is eager for bed by 7:15 ish unless she's really heavily entertained/distracted. Only then can she tolerate going to bed any later. We maintain a very similar bed time routine with her as we did with Zoe: bath, change clothes, sometimes a little lotion or massage or whatever medicine she may need if she's still taking it, nurse, books, bed, white noise CD. The bed part is always funny though. I put her in her crib and she is like a sack of potatoes. She goes limp before I place her all the way down in the crib which means she often drops the last inch in and she rolls over away from me like she's already been asleep for an hour and can't be bothered by my distraction. That's it. Now that she's teething sometimes she'll make an angry shout out, but that lasts about 1 second.  Night, night Mia.

Dressing

For Zoe, this week has been all about dressing. She is keen on all her frames: buttons, zippers, snaps and is rehearsing with them a lot. Mostly, after Scott and I are already dressed for work, she insists on unbuttoning and re-buttoning our shirts and jackets. She's pretty good at it, but tying shoelaces is frustrating her somewhat. Right now, she's mostly practicing lacing, and doing the first cross over and loop under with tying bows. Neither of us mind the delay or dressing regime, but I wonder how Ruth felt when Zoe asked her to please sit down cross legged so she could unbutton Ruth's sweater. That may have been a tad too intimate for Ruth, ya think?

My life is...

BUGGING ME at the moment. Zoe and Mia were making me a little nuts tonight. Mia was biting me and pulling my hair. All unintentional of course. She thinks she's stroking my hair while I'm feeding her. I think I'm going to go bald if she keeps it up. And she's teething like crazy and is definitely uncomfortable. She also had a flu shot today. She was in a generally good mood though I must admit.

Zoe has taken to not answering any questions until we are home and it's bedtime. She has become so fond of our nighttime routine of talking about our day that she wants to store up all her conversation until then. So, what does that look like? "Hey Zoe, what did you think of that new swim teacher?" "Let's talk about that at home at bed time." "Ok. By the way, what did you have for snack today?" "Let's talk about that when we talk about our day." She's also still talking about who is...and who is not...her friend and telling people to go away. Not nice.

And, to top it off I had a co-op meeting tonight...after swim class at the place where I got harassed for breastfeeding last week. I should have known that it was a set up to go to both after a super long client day (up since 4:30 am this a.m.) on the night before Scott heads back out of town when I was already annoyed with both little people. But, sometimes I just can't say no. So, swimming annoyed me and the meeting at school really annoyed me. 

But, it's all done and everyone is asleep. Silver lining!

Communication

Zoe is picking up lots of new tricks these days. Much of it is new language culminating in much more complex sentences. This week, she asked to call several relatives (including her dad) to invite them over for Thanksgiving. She said to each one, "X, would you please come to my house next week for Thanksgiving."  She also saw pickled purple potatoes at the Museum of Native Americans this weekend and has been practicing saying that 10 times fast. 

Some of the new communication is just weird. An example:

Mom: enter front door

Zoe: jumps out of chair and runs to meet me with finger pointed, "Mom, if you have bananas, take them back to the store right now. No bananas."

And some is a little sad. She's been talking a lot lately about who is and who isn't her friend. I can only guess that this is language that she's picking up at school and that someone is being left out.

Mini-rant

Zoe has been in school now for about 2.5 months, although it seems like less to be honest because it's gone really seemlessly. She is happy there, asks to go to Hippo House everyday, is eager to get out of the car even with someone else, and talks about her friends there and the things she does. She calls everything about it play (instead of work) and seems to really enjoy the various materials. 

I am still decidedly on the fence about it. There are a few Montessori related elements that I am still warming up to, for example, calling everything work, not sure if it's a joyful place or a more muted place, teacher is a bit conservative, no pet in the classroom.

But none of those are a big deal. The real thing that's getting to me is the co-op nature, meaning the financial and time requests. I feel nickle and dimed about everything. We've already received 5 invoices, every time I look up there is a request for fundraising, in every newsletter and weekly email there is mention of a fundraising or meeting need, I get emails from my committee about needs, etc. A few irritating examples:

1. On her birthday, I was sent home a letter that one way for me to celebrate would be to make a donation. 

2. We took class photos. They sent home a complete, non-draft set of prints and then followed up to say that we could keep them all and pay what I consider a steep price or return them all within 2 days and they would destroy them. 

3. While I was spending 3 hours on Saturday at a "maintenance day" cleaning the school, I received a huge email from the social committee asking for a variety of things. Now, this is for their "Holiday party." How many generic holiday parties have a Santa where all the kids take turns sitting on Santa's lap and taking Polaroids?

It's not that bad. I'm on one committee and I only have to do 2 maintenance days a year. And I'm only responsible for snack one week a year (although it'll likely be 2 next year if we stay which we likely will). But, I really can't stand the ongoing interaction, especially when so little of it is about Zoe. I am looking for a school not a completely new life. And she doesn't even go full day. Ok, that's it. Rant finished. 

Mia on the Move, Part II

Well Mia, I certainly underestimated you this morning when I wrote about your recent activities. Today, you decided that there was too much fun happening in the kitchen and you needed to join in. So what did you do? You climbed up two stairs by yourself to reach the kitchen. You also decided that it was time to more seriously start exploring the world from a different height. You crawled over to me stopping just short of reaching my leg. And, then you simply stood up. You stood for several seconds longer than you ever have before and then sat back down. Unfortunately I was too caught off guard to grab a camera in time. I still can't believe that you're not 10 months yet, and already exploring the world so actively. I hope you always have this curiosity and go-get-em attitude.

Mia on the Move

Mia has learned a new form of transport. She kept trying to get from place to place with her toys and had a heard time balancing on two legs, holding the wall in one hand and a toy in the other. So, she discovered that her mouth could be a helpful tool and that crawling wasn't over-rated yet.

Also, Mia has this really cute way of pursing her lips. I've been trying to catch it on film, and missing, for weeks. We got a picture yesterday.

Did you ever have the feeling...

there's a zamp in the lamp?

Or a nink in the sink?

Or a woset in the closet?

Sometimes I'm quite certain there's a jertain in the curtain.

And when I hear a tock, I know a zlock's behind the clock.

And that zelf up on that shelf!

I have talked to her myself.

I like the zable on the table.

And the ghair beneath the chair.

But the bofa on the sofa acts as if he doesn't care.

I like the geeling on the ceiling.

And the zower in the shower.

And the nupboards in the cupboards. I do like them a lot.

But that noothgrush on my toothbrush...

Well, some are nice, but he is not.

The yeps on the steps are always fun to have a round.

And so are many, many other friends that I have found...

...like the tellar and the nellar and the gellar and the dellar and the bellar and the wellar and the zellar in the cellar.

There's the yottle in the bottle, whom I do not wish to keep.

But the zillow on my pillow always helps me fall asleep.

Ok, I couldn't think of what to write about today so letting you all enjoy a little Dr. Seuss seemed like a good idea. It's my ode to synchronized nap times. Good night Zoe. Good night Mia. See you in an hour or so, I hope.

Hang 10

A quick shout out to the Lulka / Sharrett's. Yesterday Zoe started using "big guy" and "my guy", as in "hey dad, what ya eating big guy?" Only time I can think where she would have heard that is from Marc and Samuel. And for fun, after Elaine taught her to say "solid", we taught her a few complimentary hand signals as well as "rock on" and "hang 10." Shouldn't every progressive 3-year old know this?

Gotcha!

I just busted Zoe hiding her mittens in the teapot! Gotcha! Now if only I could find the marker, and the green blocks, and the tupperware lids...

Hide-And-Go-Seek

Zoe has a new secret joy that I have yet to participated in. She clearly has an underground play routine of finding something, doing something with it, and then putting it somewhere no one can find it. I have no idea when she's doing this, and can't believe I haven't caught her in the act.

For a while, I thought things were just getting misplaced because there are lots of people in and around the house. But then I started finding things that couldn't have simply been misplaced. Like the stack of Mia's burp clothes which were removed from her dresser drawer at some point and found scrunched underneath a dresser in another room. Or, the tupperware that turned up in a strange cabinet. 

So, for now, I've started keeping a list of "Stuff Gone Missing". I share the list with anyone interested and hope things turn up. They usually do. The one outstanding and most feared item on the list (my "Laurie's Most Wanted") is the red marker. We have lots or random markers and crayons floating around the house I'm sure, but this is a super fat new marker which is how I know it's missing. We had agreed, or so I thought, to keep it in a box with the few others that came in the package. Please let it have it's cap on where ever it is.

Evolution of Language

I really felt like venting more about the a-hole that I dealt with last night at the pool, but instead, I've decided to be a bigger person and let it go and blog about something completely irrelevant.

I've been noticing lately that we have 4 languages in our house. It's pretty interesting to observe. Scott and I share one language. It's English with a bit of slang and the occasional profanity. Ruth and Aimee speak Spanglish with a dash of French because of the Bolivian style, for example, they say "ciao" instead of "adios". Ruth alternates between the ratio of Spanish to English depending on who she's talking with and Aimee slips between English and Spanish within any given conversation. Kids today, huh?!

Zoe speaks a combination of those two languages although she occasionally misses an adjective or misuses a modifier. She is more prone to English but clearly understands the Spanish. She often prefers to sing her communication. When language fails her, she uses her body to flail about and send a distinct message.

Mia has taken to babbling, tongue clicking and lip smacking to communicate. She's also using more hand gestures. Fortunately, she hasn't learned how to flip us the bird. Instead, she's more likely to fling her food to let us know that she's sick of being spoon fed and would really appreciate only being offered finger foods thank-you-very-much. 

Oh, and a fifth. Our dog Chloe barks. She's often easiest for me to understand. 

Ignorant People and Great Friends

There is a first time for everything. Tonight at the public pool, where I was watching Zoe at her first swim lesson and nursing Mia, I was asked to leave. I was approached by a girl who couldn't have been older than 15 and told that I couldn't do "that" and needed to leave. She must have seen my face transform because she immediately told me I could go talk to the guy who sent her on the mission. Turns out the guy she was referencing couldn't have been more than 17 and was a part time pool employee. 

First, I told him very respectfully that it was well within my right to nurse at any facility or location where I was legally allowed to be. Then he started getting irate with me. He kept repeating, as his face became increasingly beet red, that this is a public place and there are children present. The silly part is that no one knew that I was breastfeeding except the lifeguard that was standing over me. I was totally discreet. Anyway, he was about to piss himself he was getting so agitated, and I just told him that I'd find someone who he'd trust that would set him straight since he didn't believe me and that he was in way over his head. Two co-workers kept trying to intervene saying "Kevin, stop. Seriously, you have to stop." Another on looker was just standing there nodding his head like he couldn't believe what he was seeing. 

Meanwhile, Zoe is in the pool, a strange pool with a new teacher for the first time in another area (since I had to leave to deal with the moron). Thank goodness Scott came home for swim class. When he made his original travel plans, we agreed he'd be gone Monday through Wednesday because the only thing I don't like to do with the two kids alone is swim class which is Wednesday nights. So, what did he do when he realized he needed to be gone longer this week? He came home, went to swim class with me, and then caught the 8:45 pm train back to NJ tonight. That's pretty awesome.

And, what other super hero was in my saga tonight? None other than our very own Elaine. Who else would you call if you were being harrassed about breastfeeding laws? I called Elaine to brainstorm who I could call to get this twit off my back. We agreed that I'd just ignore him and feed Mia (which I did). In the meantime, Elaine jumped in her car while her kids were no doubt also needing to be fed and getting ready for bed, drove to the pool, found me, and gave me a copy of the virginia law pertaining to this issue. I took great pleasure in handing that to them before we left.  Thank you Elaine. And, I'm so glad you're not moving too far away!

Crap update

I still feel like crap (but not as badly) and Scott needs to be away an extra night this week. Waa!

Mornings

Unlike Stella, we still have not gotten our groove back after Daylight Savings Time. Each morning sometime around 5 am or earlier I either hear Zoe singing "take me out to the ball game" (who taught her that song anyway? We've never even been to a baseball game.) or Mia cooing, if I'm lucky. If I'm unlucky, I hear Mia shrieking and Zoe hollering some version of "I'm awake", "I'm done sleeping," or "I need to go potty." The funny thing about this scenario is that she's hollering. Zoe, if you're reading this, please feel free to get off your bed and go potty or get a book or whatever other quiet pursuit can keep you occupied and clean until 6:15ish. I have no idea why, but she seems to think her bed is some type of island that she can't dismount without a head nod from dad or mom. And Mia, for you my love, you're cute but go back to bed. Please. It's really early.

Crap

Scott's traveling for 3 days this week and I just woke up feeling like crap. Crap. 

Visit from Mom

This weekend my mom flew up for a quick visit to help celebrate Zoe's birthday. Zoe was so excited that Grandma Barbara was coming. She kept repeating, "She's going to stay at my house?", "She's going to sleep with me?", "She's going to have cake with me?" and on and on. I was excited too. I love seeing my mom. We had a great visit, great weather, and a great birthday. That's a lot of greatness.

My mom's birthday is today. Happy birthday to you! Her special day however is now completely crowded out by her grandchildren's. Zoe's birthday is just 3 days before, Julia's is 2 days later, followed closely by Hannah's the following day. The upside is that my mom often has lots of celebrations, cake and happy birthday versus that month, the downside is that they are not all as focused on her. 

Mom, I hope you felt well celebrated and well loved for your birthday. We love you.

3 Years Old

Dear Zoe, 

This week you turned 3 years old. It still amazes me how much you learn each day. It seems like every 3 months you have morphed in to a newer version of yourself with new tricks, new interests, new language.  What I especially marvel at is just how happy you are. Sure you have your moments where you are generally frustrated and cranky, but by and large you are a really happy person.  

You are also an independent little girl. You want to pour your own drinks, cut your own food (and anything else that requires knives or scissors), choose your own clothes and on an on. Who doesn't? Lucky for me these are all skills you are pretty darn good at. You have become a helpful sous chef inside the kitchen, and outside you are master of watering all things green (and not so green) and raker of leaves. 

This was a banner year for you. You got a new sister, Mia, who you love to make laugh by jumping around and playing tug-of-war. You took a few very special trips. One to Hawaii with Grandpa Randy and Grandma Mickey. You have always loved the ocean and you got to swim in it every day there. You also took two special trips to Florida: one for Mia's baby naming and one for your cousin Lauryn's wedding when you got to wade with the dolphins. We also made it to Houston for Great, Grandpa Milton's birthday. This year, you also starting school at the Hippo House (Arlington Montessori School). You come home each day with some new learning that surprises me, like singing the happy birthday song in Chinese or counting to 1000 in units of 100.

Separations have always been a little hard for me. Whenever people come or go, I often have a little sadness and try to start planning for the next visit. When you came in to my life, much of that disappeared. I knew that whenever I took someone to the airport to say goodbye, I got to come home to you and daddy and now Mia too. Our house and our lives are very full. I love you. Happy birthday.

Mom

Silent Saturday

Dolphin Swim

We recently took a trip to the Keys in Florida for my cousin Lauryn's wedding. It was a beautiful weekend and a great family reunion. While we were there, we took Zoe to "swim" with the dolphins. At first, she wasn't too sure about being in the water with them; they were so big! But, by the end, she was having a blast. We also went to feed the tarpons and danced the night away with some karaoke.

The Farm

This week was our last trip of the season out to Great Country Farms. We were part of a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) share this year and had a really good time both visiting the farm and in receiving the weekly blue boxes full of fresh, local fruits and veggies. Our friend Elaine educated us about the farm and CSA's in general and we are so happy we participated. During this last trip, they were having an event called "Pumpkin Chuckin' Weekend." This basically means that you take a hay ride (really just a tractor) out to a large pumpkin field, gather as many pumpkins as you want, and take them back to the farm where they have various devices set up to raise the pumpkins up high and then drop from a great distance and smash. I didn't like it very much but it had a good shock appeal I guess. We did have fun feeding pumpkin to the pigs and jumping on the huge jumping pillow. They have awesome play houses too.  Weather was great too.  They plan to put a photo of our family on their website when they redo it in the winter. You can check them out at www.greatcountryfarms.com. We have really special memories there.

History

Welcome Mr. President Barack Obama. This is a time of history in the making. War. Economic Crisis. The first African American President. I was thinking, what could Martin Luther King, Jr. think about this. It's been 40+ years since his assassination. In honor of the tremendous work he did and all the payoff we are seeing for humanity, below is his famous speech. It still gives me chills and certainly takes on new meaning as election day, November 4, 2008, will now go down in history as the greatest demonstration of equality in the history of our nation. Let us all remember to never stop dreaming.

"I am happy to join with you today in what will go down in history as the greatest demonstration for freedom in the history of our nation.

Five score years ago, a great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand today, signed the Emancipation Proclamation. This momentous decree came as a great beacon light of hope to millions of Negro slaves who had been seared in the flames of withering injustice. It came as a joyous daybreak to end the long night of their captivity.

But one hundred years later, the Negro still is not free. One hundred years later, the life of the Negro is still sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination. One hundred years later, the Negro lives on a lonely island of poverty in the midst of a vast ocean of material prosperity. One hundred years later, the Negro is still languished in the corners of American society and finds himself an exile in his own land. And so we've come here today to dramatize a shameful condition.

In a sense we've come to our nation's capital to cash a check. When the architects of our republic wrote the magnificent words of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, they were signing a promissory note to which every American was to fall heir. This note was a promise that all men, yes, black men as well as white men, would be guaranteed the "unalienable Rights" of "Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness." It is obvious today that America has defaulted on this promissory note, insofar as her citizens of color are concerned. Instead of honoring this sacred obligation, America has given the Negro people a bad check, a check which has come back marked "insufficient funds."

But we refuse to believe that the bank of justice is bankrupt. We refuse to believe that there are insufficient funds in the great vaults of opportunity of this nation. And so, we've come to cash this check, a check that will give us upon demand the riches of freedom and the security of justice.

We have also come to this hallowed spot to remind America of the fierce urgency of Now. This is no time to engage in the luxury of cooling off or to take the tranquilizing drug of gradualism. Now is the time to make real the promises of democracy. Now is the time to rise from the dark and desolate valley of segregation to the sunlit path of racial justice. Now is the time to lift our nation from the quicksands of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood. Now is the time to make justice a reality for all of God's children.

It would be fatal for the nation to overlook the urgency of the moment. This sweltering summer of the Negro's legitimate discontent will not pass until there is an invigorating autumn of freedom and equality. Nineteen sixty-three is not an end, but a beginning. And those who hope that the Negro needed to blow off steam and will now be content will have a rude awakening if the nation returns to business as usual. And there will be neither rest nor tranquility in America until the Negro is granted his citizenship rights. The whirlwinds of revolt will continue to shake the foundations of our nation until the bright day of justice emerges.

But there is something that I must say to my people, who stand on the warm threshold which leads into the palace of justice: In the process of gaining our rightful place, we must not be guilty of wrongful deeds. Let us not seek to satisfy our thirst for freedom by drinking from the cup of bitterness and hatred. We must forever conduct our struggle on the high plane of dignity and discipline. We must not allow our creative protest to degenerate into physical violence. Again and again, we must rise to the majestic heights of meeting physical force with soul force.

The marvelous new militancy which has engulfed the Negro community must not lead us to a distrust of all white people, for many of our white brothers, as evidenced by their presence here today, have come to realize that their destiny is tied up with our destiny. And they have come to realize that their freedom is inextricably bound to our freedom.

We cannot walk alone.

And as we walk, we must make the pledge that we shall always march ahead.

We cannot turn back.

There are those who are asking the devotees of civil rights, "When will you be satisfied?" We can never be satisfied as long as the Negro is the victim of the unspeakable horrors of police brutality. We can never be satisfied as long as our bodies, heavy with the fatigue of travel, cannot gain lodging in the motels of the highways and the hotels of the cities. We cannot be satisfied as long as the negro's basic mobility is from a smaller ghetto to a larger one. We can never be satisfied as long as our children are stripped of their self-hood and robbed of their dignity by a sign stating: "For Whites Only." We cannot be satisfied as long as a Negro in Mississippi cannot vote and a Negro in New York believes he has nothing for which to vote. No, no, we are not satisfied, and we will not be satisfied until "justice rolls down like waters, and righteousness like a mighty stream."¹

I am not unmindful that some of you have come here out of great trials and tribulations. Some of you have come fresh from narrow jail cells. And some of you have come from areas where your quest -- quest for freedom left you battered by the storms of persecution and staggered by the winds of police brutality. You have been the veterans of creative suffering. Continue to work with the faith that unearned suffering is redemptive. Go back to Mississippi, go back to Alabama, go back to South Carolina, go back to Georgia, go back to Louisiana, go back to the slums and ghettos of our northern cities, knowing that somehow this situation can and will be changed.

Let us not wallow in the valley of despair, I say to you today, my friends.

And so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.

I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal."

I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia, the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood.

I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a state sweltering with the heat of injustice, sweltering with the heat of oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice.

I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.

I have a dream today!

I have a dream that one day, down in Alabama, with its vicious racists, with its governor having his lips dripping with the words of "interposition" and "nullification" -- one day right there in Alabama little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers.

I have a dream today!

I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, and every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight; "and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all flesh shall see it together."²

This is our hope, and this is the faith that I go back to the South with.

With this faith, we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope. With this faith, we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood. With this faith, we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to stand up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day.

And this will be the day -- this will be the day when all of God's children will be able to sing with new meaning:

My country 'tis of thee, sweet land of liberty, of thee I sing.

Land where my fathers died, land of the Pilgrim's pride,

From every mountainside, let freedom ring!

And if America is to be a great nation, this must become true.

And so let freedom ring from the prodigious hilltops of New Hampshire.

Let freedom ring from the mighty mountains of New York.

Let freedom ring from the heightening Alleghenies of Pennsylvania.

Let freedom ring from the snow-capped Rockies of Colorado.

Let freedom ring from the curvaceous slopes of California.

But not only that:

Let freedom ring from Stone Mountain of Georgia.

Let freedom ring from Lookout Mountain of Tennessee.

Let freedom ring from every hill and molehill of Mississippi.

From every mountainside, let freedom ring.

And when this happens, when we allow freedom ring, when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God's children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual: 

                Free at last! Free at last!

                Thank God Almighty, we are free at last!"

Morning

It's 5 a.m. Mia is cooing and babbling. Zoe is singing "take me out to the ball game." When will they get over the daylight savings time adjustment? Only reasonable person in my house is the dog, Chloe, who is sawing wood.

Here are a few extra cute costume shots from the weekend.

Halloween

We were so lucky with the beautiful weather this Halloween. It was cool enough that kids didn't sweet to death in their costumes, but not cold by any means. 

Zoe was a monkey and Mia was a chick. They had some play time in the leaves before we headed down the street to the Bluemont parade on the bicycle path at the end of our block. After the parade (where Ruth and Aimee made a surprise appearance), we went for a brief trick-or-treat with a neighbor. It's amazing how much loot kids can get just trick-or-treating on one street. Next year, I think we'll either just do a few houses or have a little party. Zoe had fun at all the houses perfecting her "trick or treat," "thank you," and "please fill it to the tippy tippy top." Only at one house did she get freaked out by a scary yard display, but when she realized the person was friendly, she managed to make her way up the sidewalk. At home, she helped give out some treats before off to bed. Mia mostly had fun playing with the chicken legs on her costume, trying desperately to get them to reach her mouth.

PS: Stay tuned for blog updates. I'm not sure when or how, but I'm hoping to make my blog a little more easy to navigate. One friend has an area where you can see all kinds of photos like a gallery. Another has an area for cute sayings by her kids. And a third keeps a running tally of the net gain/loss of her thrifty endeavours. I can barely figure out spellcheck and uploading photos on this program and a daily log for me would be something more like the number of times I'm on time vs. late for Zoe's school drop off, but I'm working on it, the blog that is.

Daylight Savings Time Sucks

We had everything so good after such a long time of Mia not sleeping through at night. Now our house is up at 4 freakin 30! Ok, it's only been 3 days, and ok, I'm not really that tired. But still, I don't want to see 4 am unless I'm 20 years old and still up partying from the night before. And, if you haven't noticed, I'm not 20.

One of our friends Elaine has a successful routine of nursing her daughter when she wakes up early and then putting her back to sleep for a couple hours. This worked with Zoe too so we gave it a try. Dark room. No eye contact. No talking. Breastfeed. Back in crib. No go. Mia is upright and chatting away. And then crying volumes if we walk out. Zoe meanwhile is in her room singing and letting us know each time the clock changes a digit.  "La, la, la...mommy can I hammer at my work bench yet...la, la, la...THE CLOCK CHANGED...la, la, la..."

I used to love daylight savings time. The extra hour of sleep was so welcomed. Basically I love sleep. But, getting an extra hour of sleep only works if others who live within screaming earshot also choose to get an extra hour of sleep. Instead, we benefitted by arriving at the Diner at o'dark 30 and didn't have to wait for a table. Oh Joy.

On other fronts, nursing has become like an alligator wrestling match. Mia is so active and curious and generally mobile that I can hardly keep her still to nurse for a period of time. I remember this phase only lasting a few weeks with Zoe, and I'm hopeful it'll be time-limited for Mia too. Upside is she's hilarious and having a great time exploring the world. Downside is nursing takes a lot longer. Mia also developed a weird splotchy rash this week. We can't figure out what food caused it or if it was something I ate. We're pretty sure it wasn't related to the high fever from the vaccine last week. 

And Zoe has decided to take a strike on naps. That would be fine if she acted like a decent human being when she doesn't nap. But, she doesn't. She acts like a tired cranky person. So, after 2 days of no naps, I finally helped her sleep yesterday by lying with her. Thank goodness. Oh wait...do I see a connection here...daylight savings time...waking at 4:30...no naps...My synapses are firing enough to indicate that there may be something here, if only I were alert enough to figure out what that may be...

Boo at the Zoo

A week ago was Boo at the Zoo. Each year the National Zoo opens it's doors for trick or treaters to come and see the animals at night and trick or treat at different vendors. This year, Zoe and Mia met up with some of their pals. Zoe was so excited, she could hardly contain herself:

"Please fill my bag to the tippy tippy top."

"I want to come back again, and again, and again..."

"I want to wear my costume all night and tomorrow and..." 

Mom:  "Zoe, why are you walking with your bag held open?"

Zoe: "In case someone wants to walk by and put a treat in." (Duh!)

"Mom, it's not so many people, that's why I'm not holding your hand."

"Mom! Mom! The cow was sleeping! That's why she's not my friend anymore. Maybe tomorrow she'll be my friend again." And then later when we passed a cardboard cut out of a cow. "Mom, this cow is my friend." 

"Mom, you're my best friend in the whole world, and I'm your best friend in the whole world." (I guess I beat out the card board cut out of a cow.)

Only dim spot of the night was an older kid who was dressed really scary and kept walking behind Zoe and making howling noises. Zoe was scared, and eventually told him that he was being scary and to please stop. It didn't work initially, but it was a good try. It only lasted a few minutes. 

Tiger= Eamon

Ghost=Connor

Bee=Helen

Monkey=Zoe

Chick=Mia (costume discarded before these photos)