Pictures: Kai and his paci-purge present scrabble game; Nina's new pasttime; Nina lovin up "daddat".
Having a hard time keeping up with kiddos these days, who have decided they don't need as much sleep anymore so my mornings to myself are cut short. It's not such a bad deal though, cuddling with Nina on the couch while watching "Bid!" (big bird) on sesame street; or getting some extra quiet time with Kai. It's great when one wakes up before the other.
Lowlights: sick kids, pale Nina so feverish and trembly in the night, poor Kai tossing his cookies from the third February virus of his short life. Kai getting rejected from a group of kids playing duck duck goose at the park (ouch, hurt my heart...a teachable moment).
Highlights: our trip to Consumnes river preserve, this time with Nate, in the late afternoon when he finished working early much to our surprise; our trip to Lake Folsom where Kai was knee deep in water and so, so, so happy about it while Nina looked for rocks to toss in the streams; our trip to hippie dippie Berkely for a kids music show when I decided-while watching the singer, a Wisconsin-born-middle-aged gal like me-to never go so long between highlights again. What else...our nice afternoon in Davis with Samir's family; our nice evening with Zane's family; realizing that I can indeed put the two to bed on my own. Taking kids to East Portal park with Kai on bike and Nina in stroller. Strolling to LaBou with Nina to get a muffin, as she excitedly pointed out little flowers and wildlife all the way home. New soccer and gymnastics sessions for Kai. A few afternoon trips with Zane and Lilly to the zoo. The day the kids took a nap at the same time; the first time ever?!
And our wonderful week with Meece. Took Kai to Disney on ice. Meece had a few nice morning walks alone with Nina. Our AMAZING hike outside of Auburn to see a waterfall; Kai almost didn't make it at first, the kid gets so hot and although it was only 70 degrees it felt much hotter on the trail. The kid looked so damn cute in his Red Sox hat and bare chest, running down the trail, and even more so when he took off his shoes and socks and rolled up his brown chinos to dip his feet in the water. He had more fun than anybody I think. Meecie's visit broke our nearly 2-week obsession with workbooks, word puzzles, color by numbers, for Kai - the weather was so nice (and hasn't been as nice since) that we rarely spent any time inside.
The kids these days - Kai likes to antagonize Nina a bit. Their dynamic reminds me a bit of me and Sara; Kai teases, Nina pinches. Nina frequently wants Kai to back off a bit. Kai is in a super-affectionate stage, with Nina and with us, which is just awesome. Almost forgot we're paci-free, it was such an easy, anti-climactic event. Nina has so many words, my favorite is the way she says "Lilly", Zane's sister, with her tongue hanging out the side of her mouth.