Holding Hands

I think like most people I am often doing one thing and thinking about a million other things at the same time. There are times when I snap out of this bad habit and become much more "present" and can just focus on what I am doing at that moment. One thing that seems to do the trick most often is when I get to hold Claudia's or Wilson's hand.

It is one of my most favorite things, especially on a cool, crisp morning when I am walking Claudia in to school. We have a rule that she must hold hands in parking lots, for obvious reasons. I particularly enjoy when I don't have to remind her of our rule and she just reaches up and takes my hand--the air is cool and her hand is always so warm. I gently squeeze her hand in mine, my fingers wrap perfectly around her little palm. When this happens I find myself thinking, "remember this, remember this feeling."

Another time that I cherish is when Wilson is nursing and he reaches up and grabs my finger and holds it tightly in his tiny, little hand. He normally only does this when he is tired and getting nestled in for a long sleep. His eyes are closed and he looks so content. I listen to his breath and it is like a little lullaby for me.

I don't know when I will abolish the hand holding rule, but I hope that I can enforce it for a number of more years. I know that I need a reminder to slow down and enjoy, or really savor my kids.

If you have read this far, I thank you for indulging my sentimentality. (Maybe I have a future in Hallmark Greeting cards?)

She's Going to Kill Us for Posting This (One Day)...

This is photo was taken without her knowledge. I guess she is really taking after her daddy.

Two-Seven Needs to Eat Too, Right?

Rock Stars!

Yes, that is right! We went rock climbing! Claudia was a champ, as you can see. I was amazed at how she actually understood the purpose of rock climbing. She was really trying to climb up the wall--reaching with her arms and placing her feet on the rocks.

The place that we went has automatic harness/rope mechanisms. They operate kind of like a seat belt, so as you climb, they retract and when you fall they slowly release you to the ground. However, Claudia is right at the threshold for minimum weight and so you will see that she had a red rope attached to her harness that we had to keep hold of in case the ropes tried to pull her up to the top!

I think my favorite part of the whole thing is her headband/sweatband. She really looks like a professional, or Jane Fonda circa 1980 (you decide).

Here are some other photos from the day. Auntie Amy was visiting from Maryland and she rocked at this rock climbing! Of course, Scott did really well too!

Sweet, little Wilson enjoyed all the activity and the colorful walls.

Macaroni Monster

I think that I have created a monster--a macaroni monster. Let's just say that Claudia is a bit of a picky eater. She has certain foods that she likes and she will occasionally eat them. One food that I can get her to eat on a regular basis is macaroni n' cheese. Her very favorite place to get this tasty dish is "Noodles & Co." Claudia has a short-hand for the name, "Roni."

During the winter in Minnesota, sometimes stay-at-home moms are short on indoor activities for kids. There are only so many places to go and trying to discover a new game to play in the same four walls of your house just isn't possible. That is when you pack up the kids and go and get lunch just to get out of the house.

It has been a long and cold winter in Minnesota.

So, I guess I inadvertently created a monster by going to "Roni" more than I should have. Now, Claudia almost has a Pavlovian response every time we get in the car and she will say, "can we go get 'roni, mamma?"

When Gran was in town from Philly, she had to eat "Roni" 5 times (she was only here for 12 days-you do the math)! We are such frequent diners at our local "Roni" that one time we walked in and one of the employees ran over to us and asked, "did you leave a baby's hat here?" And, we had. I was very thankful, but also a little mortified that we ate there so much that they recognized us the instant we walked in the door. I wonder if they think, "oh, here is that mom again who obviously can't cook lunch for her kids!"

Since that incident, I have taken to trying to change up the "Roni"s that we go to. I think that in the past 2 weeks, we have gone to 4 different "Roni"s. Thank goodness it is a chain restaurant! Although, I now feel a bit like a drug addict that has to spread out the places that we go to for "hits."

Summer truly can't come soon enough! I wonder if I am going to have to put Claudia in treatment for 'roni withdrawal?

Breaking News!

Wilson just rolled from his back to his tummy! If you are an avid reader, as I am sure you are(!), you know that Wilson has been rolling from his tummy to his back for awhile, but this is the first time that he did it the other way! While I was quite proud of him, he was quite upset to be on his tummy (I guess he forgot that he could roll to his back).

Way to go little monkey!

We're Back!

It has been a long time since our last post! We were sidelined a bit by some visitors--Gran from Philly and some illness bugs from H-E-(double hockey sticks).

Gran came all the way from Philly for a visit and she showered us with lots of love and gifts; and we kindly repaid her by giving her a going away present of the stomach flu. Actually, this is not the first time that we have been so generous with Gran. It seems like just about every other time that Gran visits we give her this type of "gift." She must really love Claudia and Wilson to keep coming back for more visits!

Fortunately, neither Claudia nor Wilson actually got this flu bug (just Scott and I), but poor Wilson did get two ear infections and TWO teeth! Yep! Two teeth at four and a half months! I have to tell you that as a nursing mother, I could have done without teeth this early.

Finally, we think that Wilson might just be famous! We all went with Grandpa to the WCHA hockey tournament semi-final game today. As part of the fun, they have "Dance Mania," where they play music and film people dancing to show on the jumbo-tran. Wilson, along with Grandpa in the background, made it onto the jumbo-tran! I don't know if I just imagined it (due to motherly-pride), but I do believe I heard an "ahhh!" from the fans in the stadium.

More soon....