Summer Is Here!

Happy June!

Paprika still has three more weeks of school left, if you can believe that! It seems like everyone else is out for summer and we are left with a month more. But we don't go back to school until September, so it all works out somehow.

It feels like a second ago the school year started and I was so nervous about Paprika going to "real" school. Now we are old pros. Haha.

Paprika will do "Senior Kindergarten" next year (that's what we're calling it around this house). Since this year was also Kindergarten, it's good to differentiate. This year had its ups and downs for sure - both good and bad parts - and overall, I am glad that we decided to give her this "extra" year to grow and mature. Next year she'll only go 1/2 days again, which will be great. I don't think either one of us is ready for her to be in school all day long.

I think what I am most nervous about for next year is that Paprika is going to be BORED. Yup, very bored. There, I said it. I know I sound like I am bragging, but it's my blog and I'm documenting this for our family, so I've gotta be straight about it.

Paprika is reading something fierce now. The other day she was doing a reading game on the IPad and I set the level to "Third Grade - Fast" (as opposed to medium or slow) - and she got every problem right. She can read anything and everything...and she does!

She can count and recognize numbers to 1000. She can add and subtract really well...two columns now without carrying (so like: 96-43=?) I will probably teach her to carry over the summer, and maybe start on multiplication/division, if she's ready.

We started a book challenge a few weeks ago where if she reads me 100 different books, she gets to get a stuffed animal from a store at Disneyland (she wants the $20 Lotso Bear from Toy Story 3). We are working on earning things around here - so anyway, in just a few weeks, she has already read me over 50 books aloud.

If I had it to do over again, I would have just set the challenge to 50 books because some of these books are LONG (so we can only read one or two/day)...and I don't want to be headed to Disneyland in the middle of summer to get that bear (because it will be HOT and crowded then - two conditions that don't mix well with this mama).

I have also learned what motivates Paprika. Haha. She is very motivated by earning money. Yesterday I offered her $1 to help me clean the house, and I have never seen her jump up so fast. Then she got to spend her earned money at Target, and she had a difficult lesson in economics and the value of a dollar. She ended up getting some sidewalk chalk and was happy. All's well that ends well.



For the summer, both of the big girls are signed up for swim lessons Monday - Thursday. You have to be three years old to take lessons at the pool, and so it is GREAT that Ginger turns three years old five days before the summer session starts. She is excited about it, but we'll see how it goes when she has to actually get in the water. ;-) She is kinda attached to her floaties and they don't allow those at swim lessons. Ginger has a mind of her own and I pity the fool who separates her from her floatie. It should be interesting!



Baby Violet is six months old now and has two big chompers (teeth) right on the bottom. She can push herself up and can almost crawl. She is really good about getting where she wants to go all by herself. She loves to be held...and is pretty vocal about not being happy whenever she is put down. She only sleeps when she is touching someone (truly). So any naps she gets are in the Ergo or if I am holding her. She is nursing great and weighs a little over 20 pounds now!

She is just now starting to sample foods - I am trying to expose her to a lot of different tastes and textures. So far, she seems pretty happily surprised with what she's tasting. As if to say, "Oh, the novelty!" One of these days soon I'll be able to leave the house for more than an hour - right now that's about all I get because when she's hungry, it's a frantic cry of "Where are you, Mama!!!"

I have about a gazillion things on the To Do list - and they are very slowly getting done. One big project I have got to do is get our main computer up and running so I can transfer photos from my "big camera" (digital SLR) onto the blog. For the past few months, I've only had my ancient little laptop to work from, and it can only handle pictures from my little camera (point and shoot). So, I have literally thousands of photos from the big camera to transfer and edit. Eeek! I can't wait to do that because it's going to feel like Christmas for me seeing all those photos for the very first time all at once.

And, of course, I also have a gazillion other things to do, too. One thing I've actually been working hard on is going through all the clothes and organizing everything. It is a pretty big feat - I look at how many clothes the girls have and am a little embarrassed about it, honestly. So, I have been donating a lot of stuff that we don't need anymore. I have to keep a lot because it gets passed down - but wow, it is kind of crazy to manage. First world problems, I know! It's a good problem to have.

Mr. M has one more week working up in Santa Barbara (for now...he will have to go back up again for awhile in a few months). Next week he starts working on Top Gear, which is a car show he cut the pilot for a few years ago. He's locked that down for the summer, which kind of puts a damper on our travel plans as a family, although I hopefully will be taking a trip with Baby Violet to Indiana in July! :-)

Yes, this post is long-winded, so I should wrap it up. I am just amazed that SUMMER IS HERE. It's always my favorite time of year, although where I live it's kinda always summer...but still, the Indiana part of me just rejoices at the thought of June - the month I always looked forward to as a kid!



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Sea Lions, Birds, and Fish...Oh My!

Mr. M hasn't had a day off work in eons. He's been working up in Santa Barbara on his "weekends" and then when DWTS ended, he went right up there to finish up the movie to get it ready for festivals. The one exception was last Thursday. Paprika had Open House night at school, so he moved Heaven and Earth to be home that whole day. It was awesome. :-)

Paprika's school was only in the morning that day (usually she is PM kindergarten) - so we had the whole day to go have fun together. Yipee!




The first thing we did was go have lunch at Rubio's. I brought lots of paper and crayons for the big girls, and they just sat there and drew the whole time we were eating. Baby Violet hung out in her little carseat (she is almost too big for it - sob!) She was happy as she could be sitting between our two tables, just hanging out. I always get a little nervous when we go out to eat, but this time it just worked! Ahhhhhh...relief!



I was craving salmon, so I ordered the salmon chile lime burrito. Yum! The thing is - since December, I have pretty much only been eating vegan. I used to be a vegetarian, but then Violet has a milk intolerance (so I can't have milk, since I am nursing her). So, back in December, I just started eating vegan most of the time. I have cut back about 98% on eating meat, but sometimes when I go out to eat and I am really craving something, I will eat it.

In addition, I started reading a lot of books and watching a lot of movies/documentaries about being vegan - and that just kind of cemented in my mind why I have been eating this way. I will not bore you with the details (and I am definitely NOT trying to convert anyone) - just needless to say, it's been working for me. :-)



So, yea...after not eating meat in forever, I had my salmon burrito. And half an hour later, we were at the Aquarium of the Pacific to spend the day!

The very first exhibit I saw was a tank full of SALMON! I swear one of the fish looked me straight in my eye and that look went straight to my heart. Oh, the guilt. I felt awful and just about broke down right there at the aquarium. Here I was looking at this living, beautiful fish and then thinking about how I had just contributed to the killing of one its comrades. Blargh. Lesson learned. If I am going to eat fish, don't visit the Aquarium right afterwards. ;-)

But that little detail aside, we had a great day at the Aquarium. Here is a video we took of the girls over by the sea lion exhibit. It is really cute (in my humble opinion) and worth watching! :-)



Ginger (age 2) is so funny. She picks out all her own clothes. After wearing only pajamas (and preferring to wear nothing at all) - she put together this pretty ensemble. Could she look any more girly?! She was like a little pink princess trotting around the aquarium.



The girls had fun playing hide and go seek out in the little water splash play area:



And of course, we had to go visit the birds. The girls loved feeding the birds. Even Baby Violet found them fascinating.



Ginger got a little help from Mr. M:



Paprika wanted to stay and visit with the birds forever. She called this one her best friend:



So, a good day was had by all. Except for the fish in my burrito. I still feel bad for that little guy. ;-)

This little cutie had the best time just hanging out. After a full day at the Aquarium, we hit the school's Open House, which was a ZOO! I'll have to post about that later because all the pictures from that are on my other camera. :-)




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I Made It Out With My Life...Just Barely!

Today after school, Paprika was invited to the birthday party of two of her classmates (boy/girl twins). It was at one of those bounce house places, and everyone in her class was going. So, of course, we went, too! Siblings were invited, so I brought Ginger and baby Violet.

Some parents (the ones who have been through this before) just dropped their kids off and bolted for the door. Now I see why! Haha.

It was totally overwhelming sensory-wise. I wasn't sure how Ginger would do because she was so much smaller than the other kids and the equipment was ginormous. She's so exhausted from her trip to Santa Barbara (she woke up at 3am last night and had a hard time going back to sleep). So, she was tired and crabby and about to fall asleep (but of course NOT falling asleep).

I knew I couldn't just drop off Paprika at the party because she has big sensory issues (and food issues), and I really needed to be there for her because something little could go wrong and boom...anxiety attack and meltdown! I am able to calm her down and ground her when I see that kind of thing coming on, so I just knew I had to be there for the what if scneario.

So, I stayed. Ginger climbed to the top of the enormous play structure and got stuck and started crying and screaming frantically. So, I had to climb up and get her (with Violet in the Ergo). Then, Ginger got to the top of the slide and was too scared to go down and started crying.

Finally, Ginger had enough and wanted to go home. But the party still had two hours left (and Paprika was NOT leaving without having some chocolate cake - besides which, she was having a great time). So, I took Ginger to the van and got out the IPad and let her learn her numbers and letters, and play this game that teaches kids Chinese. It was Heavenly. I had a moment of solace right there in the parking lot, sitting inside the van with Ginger and Violet while Paprika stayed at the party. (I told the workers I was out in my van if they needed me).

Then we went back inside for food and cake, but of course my kids did not want to eat the food and drinks being served (pizza and lemonade)- so they both had a cup of lukewarm tap water. Finally, the cake was served. Horray!

But then Paprika got a balloon and a stuffed monkey, and Ginger didn't. I finally got Ginger a monkey and a balloon, but Paprika accidentally let Ginger's balloon fly away. That was awesome.

And then I got baby Violet to fall asleep but she was awoken suddenly by the shrieks of a bunch of kids high on sugar. So, now she's fussy and can't fall back asleep.

So, like I said, I survived. But just barely!

Next time, I will drop off and RUN!!!! Hahahaha.

xoxo,
Erika

P.S. Paprika did GREAT at the party. She had a wonderful time, and really held it together. I am so proud of her. She even wants to hold her birthday party there- to which I said...ummmmm, we'll see! ;-)


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Footloose and Fancy Free!

Our little three day weekend seemed like a month. It was crazy packed!

We kicked off the weekend on Friday by having a picnic after Paprika got out of school. Ginger was so good helping me pick Paprika up at school (she wore clothes and shoes and held my hand on the walk to the classroom!)- so Ginger got to pick our destination for our picnic.

We went to the park with the ducks to see if we could see the baby ducklings again. Pay no attention to the fact these ducklings look one month older than the ones in our driveway. The girls are insisting they are the same! ;-)



Mr. M has been working on a new movie up in Santa Barbara, but he came home Friday night. He wanted to take the girls out for ice cream, so we went to Baskin Robbins at 10pm! Eeek! They were so sugar-ed up after that, they didn't go to sleep until midnight. Ahhhh, the weekend. :-)



Saturday was the most gorgeous, sunny day. Paprika had swim lessons. Then after that, we went over to our friend/neighbor's pool to swim for the day. I was lazy (okay, busy taking care of Violet) and only got this one picture.

Needless to say, a great time was had by all. What is better than playing with Barbies in the pool?



Mr. M had to work every day this weekend up in Santa Barbara, so on Sunday, he took the big girls up to spend time with Grandma and have a playdate with one of Paprika's friends. Paprika is friends with the daughter of the director of the movie. So, while Mr. M was working on the movie at their house, Paprika got to play with a friend the whole day. She loved that! Ginger stayed with Grandma, who took her on a few adventures - the farmer's market and the playground!

Baby Violet was teething big time, so I didn't want to drive her up to Santa Barbara and risk getting stuck in horrible holiday traffic. So, I just stayed home with her. She was sorta miserable with her teeth coming through on Sunday, but by Sunday night two teeth had popped through and she was feeling much better.

So, on Sunday and Monday, it was just me and baby Violet. It was the first time I've been alone with just her for more than an hour or two, and it was awesome! :-)

Now, I did miss my big girls so much that I cried the first night. I have never been away from Paprika for the night except for when I've been in the hospital giving birth. Ginger has spent the night a few times at Grandma's house in Santa Barbara (when Mr. M was working on the movie up there earlier this year). It is so hard for me to be away from them, I missed them so much!

But...it was soooooo easy with just one baby. Wow. I felt like every day, I could do anything and everything. I lived like 12 lifetimes in one day. Seriously.



We went to the beach both days.

We went to Target.

Returned clothes at Old Navy. Then went shopping for more clothes- why not?!

Dropped by a friend's house.

Went grocery shopping.

Cleaned out the garage.

Organized the girls' closets.

Took Daisy for a long walk.

Went to an Open House in my neighborhood.

Cleaned the whole house like a boss.

Did five billion loads of laundry (maybe a few less, but who's counting?!)

Took Violet to a new park I'd never visited.

We even went for a four mile hike along the coast.



I just remember how when Paprika was a baby, it all seemed so overwhelming. And now with just one baby plus Daisy dog, it seemed so easy.

For example, the first day when I pulled up to the beach with just Baby Violet in the car, I parked next to this couple with a baby Violet's age. When I parked, they had already been there awhile and were unloading their stroller, packing their diaper bag, and arguing about how many diapers to take...how many blankets, how much baby snacks to bring. I pulled the van in my spot, changed Violet's diaper (in the van), strapped her in the Ergo, and was down at the beach by the time they still had not left their spot.

I remember how hard it was those first months with a new baby - if I could go back with the experience I have now, I wonder what I could do in a day! With three young kids, I often feel in over my head. I bet if I had six kids, I would think just three was a breeze. Anyway, this weekend I was glad for the perspective.



So, late last night my whole crew came home. I was so glad to see them. I really struggled with anxiety while they were gone (what if this or that were to happen to them?) I let out a big sigh when they came home. Paprika and Ginger were both snuggled in their beds and I could go watch them breathe. ;-)

Well, that was the weekend. The first half was a whirlwind of swimming and park picnics. The second half was a lot of snuggling baby Violet and doing whatever the heck else I wanted to do! I have not felt that footloose and fancy free in a long time. It was perfect.



I mean, can you think of a better girl to hang out with on a girl's long weekend? She is pretty awesome, if I do say so myself...




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Make Way For Ducklings!

I have heard it said that May is the "silent December" - with all the end of year school stuff, we've barely had tiime to catch our breath.

This week was the Season Finale of Dancing With The Stars. I wanted to go - I know I always can go - this season just flew by and I didn't make it to one taping. I know that has a lot to do with having a new baby, and her needing to be fed every two hours.

My sweet neighbor even offered to babysit for me so I could go to the Finale and the Wrap Party. Maybe next season when Baby Violet is older. I have to keep telling myself that this baby stage will not last forever, and that I can go out and whoop it up all I want when she is bigger.

This same sweet neighbor invited us over to swim in her pool last week. It was Heaven! I even got in the hot tub and never wanted to leave. This is Ginger hanging out by the pool. Yea, she could get used to this!



One thing I love about living here is the great neighborhood we have. I know we're just renting, but it makes me want to stay here forever. (Okay, well, once the endless construction noise is over- I swear, my neighbor across the street is going for a record with building his palace). Anyhoo - we have really lucked out with our neighbors, who I consider friends.

So, earlier this week, I was inside my house and had just gotten Violet down for a nap. Ginger was running around without clothes on (because she's pseudo-potty training). I got a knock on the door, and it was my neighbor telling me to come to my driveway. So, when I went outside, I saw this:



Cute overload, right?! I had no idea what to do. I mean, we live in Los Angeles! Super urban area here. I was really worried about those ducks. So, I went nextdoor and got my other neighbor because she always knows the right thing to do. She did not know what to do! She went and got our other neighbor, because she, too, always knows what to do. It was like a little domino going down our street.

Before long, our entire block was standing in front of my house trying to figure out what to do with the ducklings. ;-) I was chasing after Ginger trying to get her to put some clothes on! Haha.

One neighbor called Animal Control, but they wouldn't come out to get them. It was decided to capture the ducks and take them to a nearby pond. The ducks got wind of this and set off into my backyard. So, the entire party moved to my backyard (I had put Daisy inside the house, thank goodness- she was going crazy barking at those ducks).



Eventually, the ducks hopped my back fence into my other neighbor's yard. I had to go get Paprika at school and then go straight to swim lessons (which we couldn't miss because we already missed Saturday's lesson). I figured I would see if they were still there when I got home an hour or so later.

But, when I got home, they were nowhere to be found! I tried to figure out what happened, but so far I have no idea.



The next day, I took Ginger and Violet to our local pond to feed the ducks and there was a mama duck there with her little ducklings, and if I squinted, I swear they were the same ducklings. So I'm just going with that because my brain cannot handle any other scenario. ;-)



That night at bedtime, we read Make Way For Ducklings. It was one of those rare instances of life imitating art. I got really teary when I was reading it. Still, I can't help but think about those ducklings and hope that they did make it to the pond. Maybe I'll ask Paprika to write Make Way For Ducklings 2. It's about time for a sequel.

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