Bee Sting

Elliot had his first bee sting today. Elliot and Laney were playing outside, when we heard Elliot scream but we weren't sure what had happened until I saw a bee by his little foot. The nasty, vicious bee had stung my little boy's foot-right by his heel. After Gramps pulled the stinger out, we put some baking soda and water on his heel. He stopped crying pretty quickly but was very content to just sit on my lap for awhile---very, very unlike him!

Honeymoon

Dave and I took a much needed and deserved honeymoon for a few days. We stayed at a quiet resort at the Heavenly Village, Lake Tahoe. It was great---we slept in, relaxed at the beach (we actually got to sit in beach chairs!), went on walks, ate some great food and watched movies. Total rest and relaxation! I think that everyone with kids should take a honeymoon at 33 weeks of pregnancy-it's perfect timing!

Dave's parents came into town to watch Delaney and Elliot. Gramps and Grandma Mimi are still alive and the kids had a great time--playing at the beach, doing art projects, going on picnics, taking horse carriage rides and playing at the farmers market. It made me so happy (and relieved) that Delaney and Elliot did so well while we were gone.

I certainly missed my Laney-Pie and little boyfriend, but I would definitely do it again.

The Warriors

Delaney loves to play dress up and has a great imagination. Elliot was a willing participant in her dress up games for awhile, but now, he's not into it at all. He'll reluctantly wear a 'crown' or 'necklace' and that's about it.

Today Delaney got all dressed up (with Elliot-kind of) and then asked for spoons to use as 'instruments' while marching and chanting around the house. It was pretty hilarious! I love it when Laney and Elliot play together--it's so much fun to watch them. And I'm thankful that they have each other for little playmates.

Haircut

We took Elliot to get a haircut yesterday--I can't believe how fast his hair grows. He looks a little stunned in the picture, but he was a great little boy-super cooperative and even sat still-totally exceeding the expectations of a 20 month old!

Yesterday we also headed to the beach with a couple of other families--it was really nice and the kids had a good time, but it would've been more enjoyable if Delaney had not been so disagreeable. We said-Yes-She said-NO--over, over and over.

Tonite, we had a picnic dinner at Spooner Lake---it was perfect-cool and quiet. We ate sandwiches and fruit and then played in the woods and by the lake. Elliot made a couple of dashes into the water--shoes and all, and had a great time throwing rocks into the lake with Delaney. Delaney did wipe out on a short walk that we took---and we've been hearing about it ever since! The kids were filthy and exhausted when we got home--exactly as two toddlers should be. Of course, I forgot my camera-but sometimes it's nice to forget the camera and just enjoy it!

Stick People

Laney has just started to draw stick people--and they're so adorable! Above is her first real stick people drawing--she told me that she was drawing Grandma B and Pepah.

My Little Caveman

Elliot so has been reminding me of a little caveman lately---any bowl or plate that is placed on his tray winds up on his head---and he loves to smear maple syrup, peanut butter and fruit in his hair. He's so filthy by the end of the day--from food, dirt, the beach, markers-you name it---that I have to wash out the kids' tub a number of times a week.

Elliot's been pretty destructive--throwing just about everything---his food, rocks-especially rocks-, his cars...... And he's very much into rough play---tackle, wrestle, climbing. His new thing is to climb up on our oversized chair and then (somehow) climb onto the windowsill and walk along it; I swear everytime that I left the room today-he got on top of the windowsill in about 10 seconds. I now have this constant fear of him falling out of the window.

And sometimes he talks like a little caveman too; today he came up to me and said--'More kiss now'. How could I resist that request? :)

Fashion

Delaney has been picking out her clothes every morning since she was about 18 months--no exaggeration. By the time that she was a little over two years old, she could pick out 'weather appropriate' outfits every morning---granted, she often looked ridiculous, but as long as she was happy and dressed 'appropriately', it wasn't a battle that was worth fighting.

One advantage to being smaller than most of her peers is that she gets tons of hand-me-downs from her friends---and it's wonderful (for me too!). Yesterday, we got a 'new' bag of clothes from a buddy, and she quickly set to work--organizing her clothes and putting together various outfits. She was thrilled! She was putting together skirts with shirts and then saying--'Or, I could wear this shirt with these shorts or these pants'. Who is this child??? Dave and I certainly could care less about what we wear most days and we definitely never take much time with our own appearances--but Delaney is a different story---I guess that's nature vs nurture. I think that we're going to be in serious trouble in about 8 or 9 years.

Not to say that Delaney is a true girlie-girl---she'll put on a 'new' outfit and head right outside to bury herself in sand---or decide to use her lollipop to paint her little face. She loves to dig in the dirt and has no qualms about getting super messy.

31 Weeks

So here I am at 31 weeks. Dave didn't think that the first picture was 'impressive' enough, so he took a couple more belly shots. Nine more weeks to go--although both Delaney and Elliot were born during the 38th week, so maybe more like 7 more weeks. --Although I have to say that I'm not in any rush--I am feeling really good, enjoying the summer and know how exhausting an infant is.... Plus I want the baby to wait until it is good and ready to be born. So I patiently will wait for the baby's arrival.

Since about June, Delaney has started to show a positive interest in the baby. Before, she would just tell me that 'babies are yucky', 'I don't want one', 'Daddy take care of baby-not Mommy' and 'We already have one (Elliot)', but more recently she's been showing interest in all of the things that she can do to help with the baby--pick out the baby's clothes, hold the baby (we'll see how that works out!), 'read' to the baby..... She even told her little playgroup that she was going to 'Take care of the baby and Elliot when Mommy and Daddy go out'!--I have no idea where she got that idea from!

I'm sure that Elliot has little to no idea of what will be coming in September---although he does try to 'feed' the baby by putting his sippy cup up to my belly! In general, Elliot does like babies--he always points them out and wants to see them---but certainly that is different from having one in his house and in his mommy's arms.

Ear Infection

Elliot and Laney woke up with worsened coughs and congestion. I went back and forth with whether or not to take them to the doctor's office---I can never figure out when I should take them to the doctor and when I should just wait it out.

By naptime, Elliot's cough sounded a bit too much like wheezing, so I called the doctor and they got us in right away. Laney has a nasty cold, but Elliot has an ear infection and respiratory infection. Of course, I felt terrible-I should've taken him in first thing this morning. But---although an ear infection and respiratory infection sound horrible, Elliot has hardly been laying in bed sick. Instead---he threw rocks at his sister, climbed up on the kitchen table a couple of times and happily played outside.

I had to wake Delaney up from her nap to get to the doctor's office on time---I was really worried that she would be in a terrible mood, but she totally proved me wrong. Laney was super helpful and well behaved at the doctor's office. She kept telling Elliot not to be scared and that he wouldn't get hurt. She told Elliot--"It's okay, the doctor is just listening to your heart-it's in your chest-just like in the (Dr. Seuss) book." She was the model of a good big sister. Despite his sister's best efforts to reassure him, Elliot wanted nonthing to do with the doctor and screamed everytime that she touched him.

Week At Lake Tahoe

My parents generously rented a home outside of Tahoe City for my family as well as my sister Julie and her family. More than anything, my kids loved spending time with their cousins-Andrew (9) and Hannah (7). They are so lucky to have two wonderful cousins and it was so much fun to be able to go on vacation with them---kids need other kids to run around with! They all chased each other around the house and really played together very nicely. Delaney was thrilled to be one of the 'big kids' and Elliot loved 'Hannah and Andoo'. Andrew and Hannah will be welcoming a new sibling to their family in January--and we can't wait to get together with all five of them!

Julie and Chuck were wonderful to Laney and Elliot, and gave Dave and I lots of good ideas of things to do with the kids---it really is nice to have an older sister who has been through (and survived!) the ups and downs of parenting.

The week started off great. Delaney LOVES new adventures and was thrilled to be at 'her vacation house' with her cousins. She was the model of good behavior. Elliot was a little cautious in his new surroundings but was his happy self. We spent Monday and Tuesday mornings at the beach and then went back to the house for lunch and naps.

However-by Tuesday nite, Elliot had a low fever and was super cranky---we think that he (and eventually Delaney too) caught Dave's cold. Really, considering all of the bugs that we could've gotten, a bad cold really isn't that bad. But Elliot became super clingy and fussy and Laney was super disagreeable and had some wretched, wretched tantrums. Just when I think that we've moved past the terrible tantrums..... It was hard and frustrating and very humbling. But if my kids are going to fall apart and not behave-they better be around family that loves them no matter what! My parents and Julie and Chuck were super helpful and supportive.

Despite the colds, we headed to Emerald Bay on Wednesday-which is spectacular-and did a little hiking and playing in the water. We spent a lot of time at the beach the rest of the week--my kids' favorite place. Dave and I went out one nite to play mini golf and have ice cream---it was so nice.

We came home this morning and Elliot and Laney are still recovering-they have pretty nasty coughs. And I must say, that there is no place like home!

July 4th

Pepah and Grandma B came into town yesterday to celebrate July 4th with us before we all head up to Tahoe for the weeek. The kids, Dave and Pepah headed to the park in the morning to burn off some of that crazy baby energy. Laney and Elliot had a great time chasing / being chased by Pepah and playing on the playground.

Laney helped husk corn with Grandma B and we had a great dinner at home. After dinner the kids played outside and ate ice cream cones before we tossed them in the bathtub.

We then put on Laney's and Elliot's pjs and put them in our red wagon to walk down to a friend's house to watch the fireworks. It was perfect. Everyone was out on the streets and the kids loved the party atmosphere, and it was so nice that we didn't have to drive anywhere or fight the crowds.

Expectedly, Laney loved the fireworks-noise and commotion-that's her thing. Unexpectedly, Elliot also enjoyed the fireworks before he got just too tired and snuggled with Dave.

It was a great 4th of July, and we're excited to head up to the lake tomorrow!

The Big Trip

Written by David

There was more than a bit of trepidation when we planned this trip. For financial (tickets are expensive) and practical (Elliott doesn't sit still for long) reasons, it didn't make sense for the whole family to go back to my friend Simon's wedding in Long Island in late June. So I had an idea: I'd take Delaney, the big girl, who'd get to spend time with Grandma Mimi and Gramps and the rest of the Schwartz clan, give Emily a break from our favorite Nudge, and let Elliot have alone time with his best girl, Mommy.

Sweet D was thrilled with the prospect - first photo in the slide show is her psyched to go on trip that only the big kids can make. (Elliott, according to sources, would be happy to have a Mommy monopoly for the first time in his life.) And for the most part, she'd keep that up.

The trip to Long Island was out of a dream, one of the easiest days I've had with Laney. She slept with her head on my lap for 2 1/2 hours, read books, watched a bit of a Curious George movie, and we landed in New York without problems.

Laney was sucked up by Grandma Mimi and Gramps (he needed only one gentle reminder not to be a Delaney hog, but that's understandable) and sought out by Uncle Mat, Aunt Rebecca and Cousin Brigid, who we were lucky enough to have visiting.

First morning, Gramps and Delaney made waffles, from scratch-yummy. It was Uncle Mat's birthday, and due to some lost poker bets the night before, I made him a "BLTini" - fresh tomato juice, scallions, vodka and a crispy slice of bacon. Not so yummy, kind of wierd.

Later that day, Mimi and Gramps and Brigid took Delaney to the beach and on a walk in the woods. Later, they went to Port Jefferson for cherry ices while Dad and the rest went to Simon and Nicole's wedding - aside here, but they had steak, lobster, tuna, duck and an awesome Rolling Stones cover band.

The next day we saw our friends Lilly Moskowitz and her Grandparents Betty and Paul. Lilly shared her bouncy house and paints and toys with Laney, and we had a wonderful breakfast there. I was coming into the bouncy house, and Lilly told me I was too big. I convinced her otherwise, and entered. After about 5 minutes, she said, "Can you please leave?" It was so sweet I was happy to comply. I'm dieting soon.

That afternoon we went to Tante Beth's for Cousin Alex' high school graduation. Laney had great fun in the pool, particularly with her duck. She'd throw it into the water and say, "I'm in big trouble!" and then Gramps or Uncle Mat would go get the duck, give it back to her, and she'd throw it back in. Repeat, repeat.

On Monday, we went on the boat. I woke up early to fish with Mat and Dad. Laney, Rebecca and Mimi met us later. We got on the boat - Laney was super excited to wear her life vest - and went to a little cove. It was choppy out, but we forged ahead. Laney said airplanes were bumpier, though she wanted to be in the cabin with Gramps. Then we went to a small island (disapearing as high tide came in) to get clams. Laney helped us, and we had a great time. We got on the boat as the last bit of sand disappeared.

That night, Gigi (Grandma Harriet) came over for lobster. Laney preferred the lamb left over from Uncle Mat's b-day but she did enjoy a clam with wasabi mustard.

The trip home was not as smooth as the trip to Long Island. Instead of fellow passengers proclaiming how wonderful Delaney is, they gave me sympathetic looks. No major meltdowns but a few close calls. For the record, Laney only slept for 6 hours the nite before our trip home and decided that the only time to take a nap was on our descent into Reno. When she saw Mommy, she ran up to her and gave her a big hug and stayed in Mommy's arms until we got to the car (not that Mommy would have let her go).

Big Lesson: I've got one sweet little girl.

Home

Dave and Delaney came home yesterday afternoon. While the trip home was rather difficult-due to Laney being disagreeable and exhausted, Dave declared that the whole trip was a success. Laney told me that she really missed me and really missed her teddy bear chair-but didn't miss Elliot--little stinker. She and Elliot fell right into their playing, fighting, love / hate relationship. Elliot was thrilled to see Dave and that his daddy was 'off the e-plane (airplane). I'm pretty sure that Elliot pictured his daddy on a plane for 5 straight days-he pointed at every airplane in the sky and said, 'Daaadddyyy, Daaadddyyy'.

Today was a day. Like most children, Laney saves her best and her worst for her mommy; we have a relationship that can't be matched or surpassed, but she also can be so hard on me and so demanding of me--and she's not even three yet.

That being said, I'm thrilled to have my baby girl home!