3rd Birthday

After weeks of many, many questions: "Mommy, when is my birthday?", "Mommy, is my birthday today?", "Mommy is so-and-so coming to my birthday?", "Mommy, am I gonna have cake at my birthday?", "Mommy, can we have my birthday at Chuckie Cheese?"  --"No", the day finally arrived.

I couldn't find my cupcake book, so I had to roll up my sleeves to churn out a proper cake; a little out of practice as I haven't made one in over a year.  It was an homage to "Super Why", one of Marcelo's favorite educational PBS shows (I love DVR).  I also attempted some sugar cookies, an unknown treat at our house.  I made "special" allergy cookies for Marcelo with the yellow icing which he absolutely loved.

Marcelo entertains the ladies.  He's a natural.

The kids kept themselves entertained with the handed-down but new-to-us plasma cars and other wheeled, motorized and non-motorized vehicles.  The older kids also kept busy playing soccer and everyone enjoyed themselves in the back yard.

(This is mostly a picture of my cute wrapping paper)

This is mostly a picture of my great bargain find of Morgan & Milo shoes at the nursery (like plant nursery) for $5.00!  Yeah.

Although, Marcelo started showing subtle signs of wear during the overwhelming present opening.  He was truly interested in each present he received.  The karaoke machine from Tia Marcela was quite the hit.

The obligatory pose with the parents. Trust me, you'll appreciate this somehow when you're older.  I'm pretty sure you will.  I think.

Your party invitations were in the theme of a library book, using a page from one of your favorite books, The Octonauts, as that is what Super Why is all about. Inside I put a little blurb about your goings-on this past year and an old school library card pocket with a removable card with your name and party details.

-- oo --

I can't remember who all the presents where from as someone was doing a terrible job of keeping track of this but here are some of the things you received:
Levis, Gymboree space & rockets undees - mommy
Two board puzzles, foam bath letters, sidewalk chalk - mommy
Two board books "Who Am I" and "What Do I Eat" - mommy
Extended pieces to Ikea train set - mommy
ABC Book and $50 Visa - Abuelos
Karaoke machine - Tia Marcela
Set of Nursery Rhyme books - []
Tool Set, set of Disney coloring media and US Bond - [Omi and Grandpa]
Toy Story Dinosaur - Aunt Sandi
Lego Duplo Set - Rick, Cheryl, Matt, Jason
Wood magnetic alphabet letters, wood learning clock with shapes - Finleys
Kids Telescope - Tio Pedro
??? - Autumn


Hopefully I'll figure out the rest and fill in.

Marcelo survives first bee sting

Due to Marcelo's allergies, I've been dreading the moment when the first bee sting would happen. I prepare for it in my mind sometimes, reminding myself to have the Epipen ready. I just assumed that he would likely have a reaction.

Well, today it happened. Sofia came running in from the back yard telling me Marcelo had been stung by a bee. I ran out to meet him, scanning his body for some big swollen ball somewhere. Much to my relief, he got stung on the hand, probably trying to swat the bee away. Aside from a few minutes of crying, he had no reaction at all. I gave him some just-in-case Benadryl and treated the three puncture marks with a cotton ball dipped in vinegar topped by a band-aid and some of Sofia's handy medical tape for good measure.

Nature and Climbing

This summer, Marcelo's legs are finally long enough to enable him to climb on those big rocks at Thanksgiving Point Gardens just like his big sister. I think he felt very accomplished.

Fortunately, Marcelo still minded me when I told him not to lean over the boat launching "fjord" unlike his sister whom I finally allowed nature (her own nature) to teach her a lesson when she fell in and ended up sopping wet. (I couldn't take pictures. She wasn't happy. She might have attacked me and the camera).

I want to do my school

Recently, we discovered the Starfall.com website which is a super great, totally free online resource for learning to read phonetically. I thought this would be a good place for Sofia to keep up her reading with the simple online books similar to the ones she would bring home from challenger that are right at her level.

Because Marcelo sees Sofia learning to read and also me spending individual time with her reviewing phonics and so forth, I told him he could do the alphabet section of the website and he often says, "I want to do my school". It is super cute. The only problem is that he doesn't have a good grasp of mouse mechanics and I'm still weary about him around the laptop seeing as what happened with those missing (broken) keys and all.

Here, Sofia demonstrates to him how to read a book and then helps him click on the letters he wants to do.

Library Story Time

I've decided to kick my mom butt in gear and do more educational, worth-while, non-TV -movie -toy, related activities with the kids. After Peter was born, I re-instituted the limited TV time I can really see a difference in how it affects the kids. For me it means more work up front. But it is what it is.

So, I decided, with Sofia's emergence into reading, that we should make regular trips to the library. Lehi recently opened a "satellite" branch, Point Meadow, that seemed custom made for the kids so we took a visit during story time.

So this is why I'm always telling the kids to "please smile for c#*!$% sake". In the other picture, I think Sofia is picking her nose.

It is the cutest thing on the outside, like a modern one-room school house. I don't really understand why they made a library whose parking lot is bigger than it's building but whatever. Also, I think the fountain outside might have cost more. Clearly, I'm not privy to how these plans are made.

Marcelo really enjoyed Story Time. I think he thinks it's like his "Preschool". So cute. It's also nice to have your big sister there sometimes.

Kangaroo Zoo

I should have entitled this entry: "Too Scared to Jump. Too Much in Love Not To."

For the first two hours a Kangaroo Zoo, I followed Marcelo around trying to provide moral support so that he could feel safe and go inside the jumpy things or the slide-y things. He was so excited to be there with the rest of the big kids, Becky's kids. He would run right along side all of them until the entrance to one of the bouncy things and jump in. Then, he would retreat and mope. He just could not get up the nerve to do it.

Becky, with her more kid friendly persona, got him to go up one of the small slides and come down. When he saw himself emerging from the mouth of the shark, evidenced by the giant pointy teeth hanging down, he freaked out. Maybe a pre-briefing session about the bouncy place would have been a good idea.

So after a couple of hours at this place, I was ready to go. A little disappointed Marcelo wasn't able to partake of as much fun as he could have had he not spent all his time running from one bouncy house to another and waiting outside. Suddenly, I look over to take inventory of the kids and I see THIS! (Yes, it's blurry. I could hardly get my camera ready on time).

He is going up the BIGGEST slide on the premises with his beloved Lydia. Lydia is Marcelo's ever-patient, sweet loving little muse. He would, clearly, follow her to the ends of the earth, walk across burning lava, submit himself to poisonous scorpion bites, ... well you get it.

Unfortunately, something happens at the top and he ends up plummeting down the slide like a sack of potatoes with the evil sorceress, I mean, Sofia directly above him with her metal, piercing sword-legs pointed at his spleen. Oh, the poor child. I cringe with anguish as I witness the calamity occurring before me but there is nothing I can do except continue to document the calamity in photographs. I have flashes of how he will be traumatized for life fearing anything to do with inflated structures, slides, and dragons.

As they disappear from sight, I run to asses the wreckage at the bottom and prepare myself for the bloody and mangled scene.

OMG.
Where is Sofia?
Where is the blood?
... and the body parts?
Wait, I still can't see his face.
I'm not sure I'm prepared for this.

I am shocked to see this looking back at me, literally, the biggest smile I have ever seen in my life. It's so big, his lips are getting sucked into his mouth. It's kind of scary looking.

But I was SO happy to see he had conquered his fear, (wasn't hurt), and had the biggest rush of his short life. All to be with his beloved Lydia.

The End

Little Gym

I decided it was time for Marcelo to have a hand at some kind of organized activity, something he could do individually. I thought time without his older sister would be good for him. Having an older sibling always at his side is effectively like an automatic supply of self confidence in your pocket. It's nice, it's convenient but I want to make sure he has his own sense of self confidence that doesn't depend on Sofia's presence and Sofia always "going first".

Marcelo has always been very sociable and outgoing anyway. He loves to dance and recently, sing. He likes to jump and run. So we enrolled him in Little Gym class where he could do all of these things and have a chance to socialize and learn to be part of a group. He will also get individual Daddy time which is probably just as important. And Ray will reap some benefits as well albeit maybe not as life affirming. But getting out of the house is a welcome reprieve when you work at home.

On Marcelo's first day, we all went to see how he would do. Before going, I asked him if he would like to go to a gym class like the one Sofia used to go to where he used to watch her. He said yes. I'm not sure how much he understood that this was something we were all going to do for him. Since nothing has ever been just about him before, I don't really think he got that in essence, Sofia didn't get to do something that he was going to get to do.

When it was time to go in, I think he still expected Sofia to go in with him. We explained Daddy would go with him and he was OK. For the first fifteen minutes or so, he was very shy. Ray kind of dragged him around doing the activities like running in a circle. It took him a while to assimilate what this whole thing was about and what his part was going to be in it. Was he going to be made to do stuff he didn't want to do, was it going to be fun, was it going to be scary --all things that needed to be considered, I'm sure. Then suddenly, after the deliberation was apparently complete, he just started doing things, running here and there, wanting to try everything. By the end, he was the most enthusiastic child there. His cheeks were red with fun-filled excitement and satisfaction at this new activity.

I'm so glad we took him there. It's a positive experience for him in the "terrible two's year" that I hope will help mitigate some of the terribleness. He has been to two more classes just with Ray since, and he has done really well at the gymnastics activities, the group activities, and of course a little flirting with the teacher on the side never hurt anyone.