Ch ch ch changes....

We had a small change in Hawksbill's school schedule so he can see more clients, so we added Friday evening to days we don't see each other. However, he is home in the morning now, so it is nice to see him for a while instead of him taking off at 6:45 am when I am most certainly NOT awake and neither are the kids.

We are making some other small changes around here now that Gwen has moved into a big girl bed and out of the crib. She has been asking for big cups so we finally packed away all of the baby bottles and moved her to sippy cups and regular cups. She's been able to drink out of a regular cup since she was about 18 months, but preferred her milk in a bottle still, and I really didn't see any reason to take it away until this weekend when she kept demanding Dora the Explorer sippy cups--fine--you can have new sippy cups, but I need to dump this mountain of plastic in my cupboard so the bottles are packed up to give away or save.

I remember when Simon was a baby I was *so concerned* that he stop using a bottle at 18 months and I took them all away at 18 months as that was some stupid number I am sure I read in a baby book or maybe a comment at the doctor's office...now I really don't care. Ah, freedom from the experts and advisers!! Now I can do what I think is best--imagine that!

I think, sadly, we are starting to give up on "quiet time," aka, Gwen's nap. The last few weeks we are lucky if she sleeps once a week, and usually she just sits in her room and screams for us to come and get her. So, I think the afternoon nap is over. I can't complain, though, as Simon gave his up at 18 months (maybe because I took away his bottles?) but she made it almost 3 years with her daily nap...ah, well...she is three.

On the homeschool front we are still plugging along with math, art and now Simon is really into Greek Mythology--I think that is mostly because Hawksbill explained which planets are named after which Greek gods. Of course, now I am just WAITING for the day my mom asks Simon about god and he responds, "Silly Grandma, there are many gods, not just one! You know, Zeus, Apollo, Hades, Aphrodite, etc..." and of course then he'll point out the boy gods vs. the girl gods which we call goddesses. I can already see a candle lit for me at church. Probably a worrisome call from Father Frank, too! Sigh....

Simon seems to like his new math books still and we seem to do 1-2 lessons when we feel like it. We might skip a day or two, but then he will do 2 lessons but they are short and he likes them...of course he has to get creative with his answer and write them squiggly or backwards or REALLY BIG or really tiny or something else which is his way.

Simon has also decided he really wants to learn sign language and although I keep saying I am going to do this, I still need to google some kind of sign language program for him. A coworker said his daughters learned sign language in Montessori so that gives me a lead I have just been so busy with work and everything that I haven't gotten myself in gear to find what would work for him and download it or see if we can afford to order something.

Changing the subject here, today is the first day of Lent, and not that I would normally follow this Catholic event, but an internet friend from Texas (who happens to NOT be Catholic, either) and I have taken it upon ourselves to see if we can give something up for Lent. For me, it will be chocolate (except for Simon's bday in case he has chocolate cake) and for her it will be second helpings at dinner. It is only until Easter, right? I can make it without chocolate, right? I think....maybe it will help me lose those last 5 lbs that will not go away.

Changing the subject yet AGAIN, I am laughing at some silly things my kids (mostly Simon) have said this week and am just posting them so I can remember them. Maybe they aren't really funny, but they were funny to me :)

After Gwen sang some of her nighttime songs (Yesterday, Sunshine, Hush Little Baby, Santa Claus is Coming to Town) Simon commented, "Wow! I didn't know she knew all the words to that song! She could be in an opera!!"

After Simon was looking at some items in a Lego catalog, "Mommy and Daddy, I really want an R2 D2 Lego watch, but I can't get it until after my birthday because it says you have to be age 6 to buy one."

Shoot...I know there was something else...darn it, I can't remember...

Oh, well...I'll post it when I remember or if Hawksbill remembers...but, back to my countdown...10 more weeks!! Only 9 if you don't count spring break which I took off so Hawksbill and I can hang out and be lazy for another full week. 10 more weeks!! I can't believe this is really happening!! So happy about this school thing ending soon!!

Until next time....