The Wee-lings

Hey Humble Readers,

First and foremost, thank you so much for your comments on yesterday's post.  It's lovely to know that you all are still out there. 

I've been pondering what to write next, but there is so much I'm not sure where to begin.  It's been a long time since you all have seen any pics of my beautiful wee-lings... so maybe we'll start there. 

Ginny and Pip at Vacation Bible School

Ginny is 4 now (4 and a half, Mummy!) and is eagerly anticipating the beginning of kindergarten in the fall.  She still has some of the beautiful curls she had as a baby, but most of her hair is straight now with just a bit of a wave.   She's still sucking her thumb (when she's bored or tired), which drives me batty, but she can also read pretty much anything at a first grade level, which makes me super proud.  Ginny did her first dance class this past spring and enjoyed herself immensely.  When I asked her if she wanted to do dance again or something different in the fall, she said "Sports, Mummy!" very emphatically.  I guess I'm going to be looking into soccer or something for her.  She loves board games (Trouble, Candyland, Reversi/Othello, and my Beloved is teaching her to play chess) and card games (Go Fish, Memory, and Old Maid).  Ginny is very much a Daddy's girl, counting down the days between weekends, when Daddy can spend the whole day with her. 

Wearing Daddy's shoes

 She and I went to her kindergarten orientation back in May and ever since she's been asking when she can go back.  The process of registering her for school was more stressful than I imagined it would be.  Which school district, public or Catholic, or would we go with the semi-private Christian school?  Which offers full day kindergarten?  Which offers bussing for the kindergarten students?  Because there are no schools within walking distance of the hobbit-hole, and because we only have the one vehicle, those last two questions were particularly important.  The big thing with all these questions was that we had to make our decision last December, because registration started the first day back after Christmas break, and it can be very difficult to get into the school of your choice here if you aren't one of the first in line.  Ultimately, we chose a Catholic school, because it does full day kindergarten with bussing (her bus stop will be just across the street from our condo) and she will get a bit of faith-based education. So, on the first Monday of January, there I was in a line outside her school with a bunch of other moms, bundled up to my eyeballs in the winter weather, at 7:00am.  She'll be going to school Wednesdays and Fridays, and alternating Mondays.  How is my wee, sweet honey bear big enough for this???

At the Zoo in May

Pippin turned 3 in May, and he's such a big boy now.  He's a couple of inches shorter than Ginny, but weighs almost the exact same.  Such a solid little guy.  He's doing moderately well with potty training, wearing big boy underwear during the day (when we're at home), and pull ups for naptime and bedtime, although he usually wakes up dry.  He still naps every day, usually 2 hours, but sometimes up to 3.5 hours.  His eczema has eased considerably, with only a few small spots on his wrists and elbows, but he has had horrible seasonal allergies this year. 

Lunch at the Zoo

Pip's speech difficulties linger, but they are much more age appropriate now.  He was in speech therapy for a little over 6 months, and made great improvements.  He talks non-stop now, and most adults can understand the majority of what he says.  His speech pathologist thinks that he'll have most of his letter sounds sorted out by the time he starts school.  And if an adult mimics his way of saying things, he will try to correct them, which is super cute.  Sadly, he has recently become a rather picky eater.  It began with mushrooms making him gag.  Now there isn't a dinnertime that isn't fraught with frustration, bribery, and wheedling.  He'll eat breakfast and lunch no problem, but dinner is always a challenge.  Meat is still hit or miss with him, but he does like most vegetables.  I really think he just gets bored with eating and doesn't want to take the time to finish, so instead says he's full or that he doesn't like it.  Hopefully, it's just a phase. 

Waiting for the parade to start

They do play well together, most of the time.  I have recently found that they do much better when I'm out of the room, which is tricky in our small home, but I am trying to figure out ways to be away from them and still get stuff done.  As much as I'm not sure that I'm ready for Ginny to start school in the fall, I am looking forward to having more one on one time with Pip. 

I was surprised by a surge of baby-fever a few weeks ago, and it struck me that my wee-lings are no longer babies.  I don't really want another child, and it's certainly too late now to be thinking that, but I do miss when they were small enough to be in my arms, when they weren't quite so independent.  Parenting really is a bittersweet thing.