a museum of snow

our first snow day was a day of discovery- it was like paid entry to a museum! while out running errands, the kids saw snowplows for the first time, wondered what the guy at the grocery store was doing when sprinkling salt, and warned mom to drive carefully- 'especially on the hills'!  we played outside for hours and accomplished all the essential snow activities: sledding, shoveling, snowball fights, snowmen and snowangels, and eating snow.  we woke up to a snow day from school and the kids watched with wonder as snowblowers cleared driveways.  they were amazed with the untouched blanket of snow and almost had to be tied to their chairs to finish a french toast breakfast.  pajamas were hidden under layers of snow clothes and another round of exploration in the 'bright' backyard began. forts were built and smiles abounded.

...mom is now busily dealing with the price of admission to said snow museum- cleaning the house of wet slushiness!   

a discovery that may change christmas forever

for the past 6 years, i've made and mailed 50 handmade christmas cards.  with tender loving care, i spend ridiculous amounts of time matching the color scheme of the card to the colors in the photo. i spend large sums of money for the perfect paper crafting supplies.  and, i'll be honest, i carefully construct a list of VIP receivers to ensure that my limited supply goes in the most appreciating hands.  despite all this, christmas cards has been my absolute favorite TO DO item of the year! unfortunately, a very late start on pictures, a recent call as yw pres, constantly having a toddler- strewn house, and a recent cross-country move turned 2012 into a very different year.  it became a pre-designed, costco- printed, mass-produced, photo- paper cards kind of year.  (don't get me wrong, i see them as a great option for those who do not see this TO DO item as attractively as i do.)
after getting over the initial shock of sterility in costco's options, i began noticing their utility.  thoughts like, 'i can send out however many cards i want at a fourth of the cost' and 'that was so much easier' and 'i can even use these for neighbor gifts which usually require an entirely new set of created tags' and 'what? they even come WITH envelopes' crept in!  the practicalities of this new discovery are almost limitless! 
...stay tuned for 2013- this little discovery may have changed christmas forever! (in the mean time, enjoy 2012's pictures:)

 

it started with a whisper

whispers are the window to jack's soul.  i know what's on his mind according to his whispers.  i know if he is trying to remember a task from mom because he whispers it over and over to himself until it's done.  he gives encouragement and positive self talk to himself in a whisper too.  for instance, mom says, 'no screen time now.'  jack can be heard whispering something like, 'mom said no.  i want screen time.  screen time will be after school with kindin.'  all schoolwork is accompanied by lots and lots of whisper reminders.  and his solitary play is usually in quiet whispers: batman fights villians under his breath; lego towers are built with barely audible instructions; and cars crashes happen in hushed tones.

ps. the only other form of knowing for jack is the mood chart magnet intended for his sister (whose lack of emotional 'whispering' is sometimes concerning).  kindin doesn't touch it but jack checks in almost daily!    

suckala, stink eye, and a sense of rhythm

will now gladly jump up on the lap of another
'chocola' (chocolate) and 'suckala' (sucker) are her favorite snacks
always refers to herself by her full name rather than her nickname dolly
Overheard saying "whoa that is awesome"
a blanket or milk goes everywhere with her
readily allows 'kini' (kindin) to take care of her but requires some warming first to jack
can sort the laundry with 90% accuracy
her chompers are larger than her siblings'
almost every character/ picture/ cartoon is 'jesus'
her hair is out of control
she has her own room temporarily because she kept calling out for her sister (who couldn't help but keep responding)
she.is.still.so.LOUD
she has a great sense of rhythm
is acutely aware of the names of her siblings friends and refers to them by name during playdates
often found talking on pretend phones
sweetly says 'i lub you' before bed but is capable of one, mean stink eye

the twinkle in her eye

all things santa has given kindin quite an eye twinkle.  it's so cute to see her pseduomaturity crumbled by a bursting gullibility to the magic of santa and elves.  my personal feelings about santa and elves aside*, this photo is a priceless reminder of her littleness!  (it's guessed that by next christmas, her discerning little brother might just ruin this twinkle!)

*dont get me started on elf on the shelf--- it's an entirely different blogpost rant beginning with: seriously, I'm supposed to buy into one more magical rouse to mess up the real meaning of christmas?

put your shoulder to the wheel

the parry household has introduced a chore chart.  in the 2 months it's been in use, we have gleaned some information: the chart itself has created quite a competition between kindin and jack (they now each have a separate chore chart); an earning potential has yet to improve jack's ability to delay gratification (buying a mario water bottle didn't improve chore performance); daily, kindin thinks of something she'll buy herself but in the moment still caves to buying her own pack of gum (really? with all the gum floating around this house?); kindin desperately tries bartering her way out of losing money with a missed chore (she rarely misses); and jack really, really hates sweeping the floor!

it's all about dad and not so much about mom

lately, kindin has been all about dad (and not so much about mom) and i have proof!!!

exhibit A: (a spontaneous school narrative written about her 'family' but only mentioning her dad)

...accompanied with evenings doing special coded notes back and forth and other dad-designed brainteasers.


on to exhibit B: (a note of gratitude for a lavish playdate organized by mom- done only to fulfill a punishment)

...accompanied by large amounts of sassiness, eye rolling, and other butting heads moments

some blustery

the first snowflakes came- albeit teensy, cute, and light as air... they arrived.  mom was excited, jack and kindin tried catching the snowflakes in their mouths and dalia watched in wonderment.  within minutes little fingers were cold and we opted to watch the snow fall from inside the comfort of a warm house. 

when the snow melted in the afternoon, jack asked with a glimmer of hope, 'is it summertime now?'

a few and far between

dave is not one to flatter and his compliments come few and far between.  the drones of his wife ('a girl needs to hear she's pretty more') are often met with additional subconscious resistance and the viscious cycle of few and far between continues...  but every time those few and far betweens come, they are absolutely sensational!

smile, you're on mom's phone camera







tricks and treats

carving pumpkins:

 

jack genuinely grossed out by pumpkin guts, kindin in a thriller pose learned at hip hop class

kindin's very first carving- hello kitty with happy helloween printed on the back. dad delivered batman for jack.  dolly loves a good shoe!

a halloween party:



dalia loved the sugar cookies

red light, green light occupied party geusts for almost an hour
 

costumes:

kindin was an owl (her classroom mascot)... mom returned all her supplies and scored a way better costume from a friend who'd already made the costume! 

was there any geuss on what this guy would choose for a costume?

as is typical, dad threw together a classy, last minute costume- his department was assigned a cowboy theme 

miss ballerina (courtesy of megan) would not cooperate for an action shot
 

trick or treating and trunk or treating:

 

trick or treating with our closest allies!







the tale of a mole turned terrorific

There once was a girl who had a mole... A terrific mole.  A mole that rivaled cindy crawford's trademark mole! Most everyone she came into contact with liked her face enough and the girl with the terrific mole felt quite confident in her face.  after many years of living with a cute enough face, the girl with the terrific mole married a man who loved her face too and they spent 3 years looking at eachothers faces quite blissfully. in 2006 their first baby was born (sans terrific mole).  this baby girl mistook mom's terrific mole as an oddity and spent cuddling moments picking at it with a look of alarm. This same scene repeated itself with baby number two and three as well; mother giggled that her little babies obviously didn't recognize a terrific mole when they saw one.  Until one day when the children began verbalizing their thoughts about the terrific mole. "Can you get it off?"  "Do I have one?" "It feels weird!"  in addition to lots of horrified questions, there was no longer curious rubbing but rather disgust with accidental contact.  "Ew I accidentally kissed it!"  the mole became a terrorific obsession with frequent questions and disgusted statements.  there have also been renderings of the terrorific mole... and most recently there was a spontaneous impression involving hershey syrup:

what once was a terrific mole has become terrorific (to some).  that girl who made it through the cruelties of middle school without being scathed by facial insecurities still thinks it's pretty terrific! (and so does she, i'm sure:)

A future engineer?

Jack is an inquisitive boy whose questions can sometimes catch us off- guard.  We know to expect the re-occuring, "how is sour cream made?" question. But Last night he wondered, how do you make money? His dad answered him something very practical like 'i do what my boss asks and then he pays me.'  Jack insisted, 'no.  how do you PAINT money?'

slippers and pj pants

Ever since we were first married, one of my favorite articles of clothing on David was his slippers. It seemed to symbolize my small victory in taming his wild spirit.  relatedly, it should be no surprise that my second fave clothing item on David is pajama pants!  Again, for the same reason: I like to see my man comfortable, relaxed, and content at home!  So happy to be welcoming weather that brings out his domesticated garb again!

i'll forego embarassing documentation of his 'less manly' attire and instead showcase a pic of his loving, dedicated, and reliable self with our precious cargo! (same idea)

dalia at 18 mos.

- she yells 'pease' over and over when wanting something
- she's close to figuring out how to ride a scooter
- she recently put herself in time out for a tantrum
- she is often seen clutching a baby doll or large stuffed puppy
- she hollers hello to 'kini' when we pass the school even when mom forgets
- she is particular about the way she holds hands
- she reports that her poopy diapers are 'tinky' and 'gwoss' (stinky and gross)
- she has unexpectedly started demanding that her blankie goes everywhere with her
- she surprised us by hopping in the battery powered jeep and driving off
- she remains our loudest child
- she keeps an unkempt house due to her current shoe addiction!

A pumpkin patch on crack

Albeit a bit irreverent, 'a pumpkin patch on crack' is exactly how to describe Vala's - the local family fun hotspot.  Coined by a friend, it really is a trip in comparison to any other pumpkin patch we've seen. Its sheer size made for an entire Saturday of fun... and we have David's work to thank for paying its crack prices entry fee!

the first 41 days of school

 



Kindin's first two months of first grade were difficult! (or as she would say: '42 days for everyone else and 41 days for her' due to her unfortunate first day absence)  academically, her teacher's skills and a small classroom size are a perfect fit for her; however, trying to make friends in a classroom filled with kids who went through kindergarten together has been a difficult challenge.  for 41 days there have been verbalizations of 'i don't want to go' and mealtime prayers expressed that 'school will go okay'.  mom and dad spent lots of those 41 nights letting her stay up to talk and walking around the block problemsolving the confusing world of friendships.  she felt lonely at recess for 41 days and longed for her old friends who were at school 'without her'! 

today as she left for school with a smile on her face, i was so happy to undoubtedly sense that she is beginning to enjoy school!  she is being stretched and challenged academically and she has bravely overcome the social hurdles of this peculiarly tight knit group of students.  I am so proud of her during these first 41 days of school and so happy she is excited for the year ahead.

trying to acclimate, wanting to hibernate

the cooler weather and darker days i knew were in store are here!  try as we may to maintain some normalcy with all these changes, we aren't.  the biggest change is our morning routine (or lack of). with a late school start, dave's lenient schedule, and a mom tired from tending sick kids battling foreign germs, we end up hibernating every morning (with the exception of kindin who can often be found making her school lunch in the wee hours of the morning).  morning yoga and bikeriding are ignored and exercising happens at odd times- sometimes over dinner*.  and despite a personal vow to walk to school until we physically couldn't, occasionally we've given in to transporting by car!  today's indoor temperature is 62 degrees so we are lounging around in our pjs, baking, and resisting the urge to blast christmas music...  it will certainly be a non-normal winter filled with flexibility (and likely some hibernation)! 

(*an acclimated bikeride at lake zorinsky)