10.20.21 - Kid snippets: Jane wants to be called "Maybe"

I recently introduced Jane to "Call Me Maybe," and she *loves* it. She keeps requesting that we listen to her "girl song." We've listened to it a lot this week and we were dancing to it tonight. Now she's requesting I no longer call her "Jane" and instead refer to her as "Maybe."

10.17.21 - Joy status: leisurely Sunday morning

Leisurely Sunday morning. With Jack and I both working full-time now, I'm normally running around trying to get done as much as possible even on the weekends. But today Jack is working, my in-laws are out of town, Clara is at my mom's house because she spent the night last night, and so the only people in the house are Jane, Calvin, and me. It's giving me the opportunity to pay a little bit more focused attention on them than I usually can.

We made chocolate chip pancakes. Jane helped a lot with pouring milk and cracking eggs and even putting some of the chocolate chips in. We ate them as we made them. It made the whole house smell wonderful and feel very cozy especially since it's nice and chilly outside (woooooo fall!) We listened to the entire Nightmare Before Christmas soundtrack followed by the soundtrack to Charlie Brown and the Great Pumpkin.

Then Jane and I played a Thomas the tank engine memory game. We started with just 4 pairs of cards but slowly expanded until we were using 12. She's getting pretty good at it. After 5 or 6 rounds of that, she wanted to play Connect Four. I tried to teach her the real way but eventually let her and Calvin play their own version that involves racing to put as many pieces in as possible. They really enjoyed it.

Now I'm reclining on the couch brainstorming Christmas wish list ideas for the kids (at my mom's request because she gets started ridiculously early) and the kids are each doing their own thing in the living room peacefully. So nice to take a morning off and just hang out with them.

10.7.21 - Kid snippets: dancing to Can't Help Falling In Love

Tonight I tried to show the kids the second half of Labyrinth but for the most part they wouldn't stop doing other things, whining about stupid crap, and interrupting the movie. It was not what I'd hoped for.

But when it was over, Jane asked me if we could dance to lovely songs. So I put on the Elvis Presley version of "Can't Help Falling in Love" and the whole family danced to it three times. During one iteration, I held Calvin in my arms and danced with him while Jack did the same with Clara, and Jane twirled in her pretty dress between us all. It was pretty fantastic.

I think feeling that range of irritation to joy in the span of barely an hour is quintessential parenting.

9.15.21 - Joy status: Hank Green TikTok

This video! I love Hank Green (guy on right) and dude on the left adds a lot.

3.19.21 - Parenting is amazing.

 A couple days ago I saw this video and actually teared up:

The video makes me think about how it feels to be a mom, how much we love our children and want the best for them, and how hard it is to articulate those feelings to anyone who has never been a parent. It just changes your entire life. It changes you, it makes you grow and love in ways you didn't know were possible.

Since watching the video I've had the song in my head all week. I've been listening to it at work and humming it to myself at home. In fact the other night after the kids were in bed I was humming it in the shower. I heard Clara pitter patter in to use the bathroom but pretended not to notice. I was still humming to myself when

Clara: Mom? Are you

Me: Yeah?

Clara: Are you taking a shower?

Me: Yeah.

Clara: Oh. I'm just using the potty.

Me: Okay babe. *continues humming*

Clara: Mom?

Me: Yeah?

Clara: You're making beautiful music! It makes me so happy to listen to it.

Me: Oh, thank you!

And then she went back to bed.

1.23.21 - Sweet evening with the kids while Jack is out of town

(Pre-evening kid snippets)

Jane asked to play "Text Me Merry Christmas." I did but I know Clara doesn't like it when we play holiday songs outside of their seasons. Sure enough Clara came up to me and very quietly asked if we could play a January song. I searched the word "January" on Spotify and found "January Wedding" by the Avett Brothers. It's a very laid-back, sweet sounding song. Clara started slowly dancing to it in the living room. When the singer actually sang the word "January," Clara turned to me with a huge open mouth grin.

Jane was sitting on the top bunk holding a long stick and pretending it's a gun. She kept saying "Pew pew!" as a sound effect but also as a verb, as in "I pewed the kitty!" when she pretended to shoot her stuffed cat. She narrated her pretend play to herself, and I was trying not to laugh so I wouldn't distract her. I heard "Yeah now he's dying! Because! I'm a super hero. To the rescue! ... Just kidding he's fine. Pew! I pew the wall!"

(And the evening)

Out of boredom, I rotated the coffee table 90 degrees parallel to the green chair, thinking the kids would get excited about the larger space. Actually it was the minimal space between the table and the chair that caught their attention. Clara wanted to treat the space like a tunnel for a toy train to go through, whereas Calvin just wanted to squeeze into the space and sit there (thus blocking Clara's tunnel). 

In an attempt to distract Calvin, I spread a full size blue blanket over the living room floor, put an empty egg carton on it, and started filling the carton with the Toy Story 4 figurines, saying it was a boat on the ocean. This distraction was way more interesting to Clara, who started playing with the "ocean." Jane joined her. They played happily while Calvin sat in his cozy spot and watched the, occasionally crawling through one of the spaces in the coffee table to stick his head out and shout at them. They all continued to stay busy without fighting while I made dinner.

While I cooked spaghetti, I blended the sauce with a can each of green beans and corn. It still looked reddish, and smooth enough that it wasn't too obvious. When the food was ready, I asked Clara to put three forks and three paper towels on the table. She got really excited about it! (We clearly don't eat meals together very often.) She asked me if she could also get us drinks (yes) and spoons and more forks (no). We moved Calvin's high chair to the table, and I brought their plates of spaghetti. 

I don't know if Clara was hungry because she ate little lunch or if she was just excited to participate in a discrete family meal or both, but she ate all her spaghetti quickly and easily. She asked me if there were meatballs in it. When I said no, she informed me that this is regular spaghetti and real spaghetti has meat balls. At one point I got up to get something for one of the others, and Clara told me that when I'm not eating I need to place my fork next to my plate neatly, not leave it on my plate. She also wanted me to politely wipe off my mouth with a paper towel at the same time as she did. 

Calvin and Jane also finished their dinner pretty easily, so I gave everone miniature Tootsie pops. Clara wanted me to watch as she and Jane "cheers" each other, i.e. gently knocked their Tootsie pops together and said cheers.

After everyone finished their Tootsie pops, we had a bath. Jane was very eager to help rinse soap off everyone else. Clara was happy to let her (Calvin was ambivalent). At one point Jane dumped a cup of water right over Calvin's head, and he didn't freak out. He just kind of squinted and waited for me to offer a towel. (Small example of how the younger children grow up learning to be more flexible.) They started splashing and getting really silly until they were laughing at everything each other was doing. I didn't really want them to soak the bathroom but I also don't like to disrupt them if they are all really enjoying each other's company. They splash each other and say a bunch of gibberish and laugh and laugh (just now as I type this Clara told me to say "blue be binky macka bah bah boo" for example).

As is often the case right now, Calvin was done first. I got him dressed and set him up with some ABC videos while the girls enjoyed really splashing now that the shower curtain was closed. Not long after Jane, then Clara, followed. As I started typing up this post, the three of them were peacefully watching ABC videos together, and for a moment I watched them and thought about how deeply happy I am that they are growing up together, and we're forming a tiny tight knit community.

1.23.21 - Kid snippets: January songs and Jane pews the wall

Clara woke up and said she's not feeling well. We have a playdate today and I asked her if I should tell them not to come over. She told me that she will be feeling better at 11:23 a.m. She even got out her toy clock to show me what time she was referencing.

Jane asked to play "Text Me Merry Christmas." I did but I know Clara doesn't like it when we play holiday songs outside of their seasons. Sure enough Clara came up to me and very quietly asked if we could play a January song. I searched the word "January" on Spotify and found "January Wedding" by the Avett Brothers. It's a very laid-back, sweet sounding song. Clara started slowly dancing to it in the living room. When the singer actually sang the word "January," Clara turned to me with a huge open mouth grin.

And now Jane is sitting on the top bunk holding a long stick and pretending it's a gun. She keeps saying "Pew pew!" as a sound effect but also as a verb, as in "I pewed the kitty!" when she pretends to shoot her stuffed cat. She's narrating her pretend play to herself, and I am trying not to laugh so I don't distract her. I hear "Yeah now he's dying! Because! I'm a super hero. To the rescue! ... Just kidding he's fine. Pew! I pew the wall!"

1.20.21 - Joy status: TikTok

TikTok. So many people out there sharing their humor and creativity, showing the things they really love (kids, pets, parents, favorite recipes and movies), inspiring athletic abilities and dances. I just love thinking about these people technically alone in their kitchens or backyards acting like total dorks in the hopes of making a bunch of strangers laugh. It's awesome.

11.12.20 - Joy Status: Elephant Love Medley

The moment in Moulin Rouge's "Elephant Love Medley" when Ewan McGregor friggin belts "WE SHOULD BE LOVERS!" Most of the times I've listened to this song have been just to listen to that moment.

8.17.20 - Joy status: The Little Mermaid with the girls

Tonight I watched all of The Little Mermaid with my kids (mostly the girls as Calvin kept finding other things to do). This is a major movie from my childhood and it's been nostalgic to watch it with them. I don't think they've sat and watched it all the way through because they weren't sure what was going to happen. They were riveted, especially Clara. When it was all done Jane said "Wasn't that so fun to watch?" We are re-listening to "Under the Sea" which Jane has informed me she particularly likes.

7.10.20 - Joy status: making kids like music

At my kids' ages, I can make them like basically any song just by getting into the song myself. Now when "The Room Where It Happens" from Hamilton plays, Calvin starts giggling and Jane wants everyone to get up and dance, lol.

5.21.20 - Joy status: Glad to be back at work

My lab is doing a "soft" reopen for the rest of May (where we work at half staff to catch up before our full reopen June 1), and I am so glad to be back. I've got my standing desk, coffee, sunny view of big trees and wild turkeys, and Spotify. Ready to go! I'm also really glad to see my coworkers again (even at a masked distance) and just to have another location to go to. I hope you guys--especially my extroverted friends--are getting to experience the same now or soon.

4.2.20 - Joy statuses: Clara's chipmunk voice, Baby mine, siblings

1) Sometimes chipmunk-voice Clara tries to do the voice of the Cave of Wonders from Aladdin with hilarious results. ("INFIDELS! You have TOUCHED the FORBIDDEN TREASURE!")

2) Some nights before bed I hold first Jane and then Clara and sing the lullaby "Baby Mine" (from Dumbo). When it's Clara's turn, Jane usually lies in her own bed singing along with us. <3

3) This is a repeated joy but I am *so* glad that these two girls have each other (and also Calvin as he gets older and more interactive). Either one of them would be a lot more bored and lonely right now without the other, but instead they play together all the time.

1.31.20 - Joy Statuses

12.31.19 - joy statuses

9.30.19 - Joy statuses

7.31.19 - July joy statuses

6.30.19 - Joy statuses