Great Wolf Lodge and SNOW!

We spent a fun filled Christmas weekend at Great Wolf Lodge, where we enjoyed the water park, the arcade, the MagiQuest scavenger hunt, and SNOW! Not only does it "snow" in the lobby several times a day (it's actually little bubbles), but we got real snow as well - about 3 inches during the night last night and into the morning today. The kids were thrilled; I was not so thrilled when I realized that I was very ill-equipped to brush the snow off of my car, not having had to do so in years. Even when it does occasionally snow here, my car is kept in the garage. Since we were at Great Wolf Lodge during the time it snowed, my car had a couple inches of snow on the windshield and I had to use a windbreaker of Ben's to clean it off before we left to drive home today. Without gloves. It was cold. Ben enjoyed throwing some snowballs once we got home. Rebecca enjoyed (is enjoying still I might add) a nap, having gone to bed at 10pm last night and woken up shortly after 6 this morning. Joel had to work this weekend, but he met us for part of the afternoon yesterday and stayed for dinner, and then met us again for a couple hours beginning late this morning, had lunch with us, and then we all headed for home.

Ben went on all the water slides this year, even the "howlin' tornado" which Joel and I each took a turn on with him-- it was scary!! This morning he found a friend - a kid who goes to the J Team after school program with him - and they buddied up and went on all the slides together which was good since Joel and I didn't get changed into our swim suits today. I also broke down and bought him the MagiQuest wand and I did the scavenger hunt with him for about an hour or so, which he was really into but which Rebecca was way too young to understand and she got bored and cranky very quickly especially when Ben wasn't too keen on letting her share the wand. Three is still a bit young for Great Wolf Lodge -- she had fun, but wasn't able to participate nearly as fully as Ben did. I think it's definitely a Christmas tradition I am going to continue though -- it's close by enough that Joel can join us when he is done at work (and he always has to work Christmas weekend) and it's a ton of fun for the kids and just gets even more fun for them as they get older. We had a great weekend!

Christmas Lights

Tonight after the obligatory Chinese-food-on-Christmas Eve, we decided to drive by a Christmas Light display a friend had told me about, since we were near that neighborhood. (Click on the link and watch a couple of the videos, they're cool). We thought the kids would enjoy it, being not only lots of lights but set to music also.

But the kids were in one of THOSE MOODS apparently, where nothing is good enough. We parked and tuned the radio to the correct frequency, and watched the lights for a while but Ben kept asking inane questions about Christmas lights, pretending not to understand the concept.

Becca was quiet and watched intently and bopped to the music so I thought at least she was appreciative. But then as we were driving away she started singing to herself one of her made-up songs -- "That was not beautiful/ That was not beautiful/ It was scary/ I want to go home...." The tune was remarkably close to Carol of the Bells.

To top it off as we arrived back in our own neighborhood and drove past a particularly garish display of lights and lawn ornaments, both kids plastered their faces to the window and were all, "WHOA! Look at THOSE lights! That's AWESOME!" Ben was doing it to be obnoxious I am sure, but maybe Becca really does like those lights better. Or maybe she is learning how to be obnoxious, too.

Come to think of it, she is definitely learning how to be obnoxious, too.

Terrible 3's

The first hour of my day went something like this:

7:35 a.m -- Becca throws a tantrum because Ben beats her to the bathroom. She tries to skulk downstairs without waiting to use the bathroom or get dressed, gets scolded, and sulks some more.

7:40 a.m -- Becca sulks through her morning "business", yelling at me to leave her alone.

7:45 a.m -- Becca throws a tantrum over the clothes I picked out for her, because she wants to wear one of her summer dresses and it's 35 degrees out. tantrum ends in her hitting me twice while I'm trying to get her in her clothes (I think she's yelling "they don't match! they don't match!" as I am trying to shove her into her pants). The hitting earns her a swat on the bottom. More sulking.

(7:46 a.m. -- BEN: I'm being good, right Mom?)

7:55 a.m -- Another tantrum because the pancakes I fixed for her breakfast are on an orange plate, and she wanted them on a pink plate. BIG tantrum. Joel sends her to sit in time out. She eventually comes back to the table, but only takes one bite of breakfast.

8:25 a.m -- tantrum over what coat to wear today narrowly averted, because I give in and let her wear the puffy vest with the hearts on it even though she really should be wearing something warmer.

8:35 a.m -- Preschool drop-off! Someone else gets to put up with her tantrums for the rest of the day, though (as usual) by the time we get to school her disposition becomes charming and sunny. It seems as though she saves all of her tantrums for me!

Kindle, How I Love Thee

My Kindle arrived on Monday. Since then I've been spending a lot more of my evenings reading rather than watching television. I love how you can choose one of several fonts in addition to being able to adjust the size. It's much easier for me to read in low light not only because of this but because there's no shadow across the page like there would be with a paperback. And I love how you can download a free sample chapter of any book before you decide to buy it. I downloaded a few samples of different books I'd heard about from various sources, and decided on The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins for my first Kindle read... it's a quick, entertaining story. Since it's been years since I actually managed to finish a book, I figured I better ease my way into it. So far, so good!

No Jerks

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Love Story

Ben discovers Taylor Swift, and the infatuation begins...

Visit with Uncle Mike

Joel's brother Mike came for a visit this weekend, and the kids had lots of fun fighting over who got to sit next to Uncle Mike in the car, at restaurants, etc. We had more than the usual number of meals out this weekend -- Chinese at Mama Fu's, burgers at Big Daddy's, and pizza at Mario's -- which was a treat for the kids. Oh, and Pinkberry! (Though my Pinkberry cravings of late have been diminished by the exceedingly cold weather, even though there's now a Pinkberry two minutes from the house). We also played laser tag and video games (Ben) and bounced in the inflatables room (Becca) at Sports Connection.

Ben had his first real basketball practice -- games start after the holidays -- and Becca spent her first weekend in underpants 100% of the time (except for bedtime) and had only two accidents. Good job Becca! After resisting mightily, I think she's finally boarded that potty train. (Knock on wood). She went to school in underpants most of last week, and averaged about two accidents a day until Friday, when she stayed dry the entire day and thus earned her heart's desire, a yellow Zhu Zhu pet with a pink nose.

Becca also attended her friend Raymond's Star Wars themed birthday party this weekend, and Ben discovered (actually I discovered this also) that if you go on YouTube and type in any artist and song, you can pretty much watch any music video you want. Who knew? Okay, probably everyone but me. This new found discovery was made more palatable with the introduction of a pair of headphones so that we all did not have to listen to Ben's favorite songs ad nauseum.

In summary, a good weekend!

dry underpants girl

Becca stayed dry all day today! Yay Becca!

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DIY

This lovely corner desk and chair (from Target) was delivered yesterday. Joel opened the box for the desk, took one look at the instructions and all the pieces, and announced he was tired and needed to go to bed. So I stayed up late and did the project myself. I am pretty proud of myself! Just don't breathe too hard on it, OK?

Too Many Errands

This weekend involved way too many errands. There was a trip to BJ's in addition to the usual grocery shopping, a trip to Dick's to get basketball shoes for Ben, a trip to Trader Joe's to pick up something to bring to a holiday party we went to Saturday night, and Joel made a separate trip for some new clothes and to the wine store. Ben had basketball and cub scouts, and I did a good bit of online shopping this weekend as well -- ordering a desk and chair for our new iMac (it's set up on a folding card table at the moment), a new printer (ours is broken and we've been printing stuff out at Joel's work or at the neighbor's house when necessary), and a treat for me - a Kindle! Very excited about that last one. It seemed like a really busy weekend, though aside from the holiday party we went to we really didn't *do* a whole lot. Other than running around. We are excited to have Uncle Mike visiting next weekend, and looking forward to it already!!

Bundled Up

***Disclaimer*** I did not take this pic, thanks to Becca's classmate Laney's Dad for this photo-op at a recent birthday party.

Honorary Cub Scout

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School Pic

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Hanukkah, Night 8

The grand finale....

Sleepover

Hanukkah, Night 7

(Brought to you by Grandma and Grandpa).

Weird... Ben's claws were moving so fast they're just a blur?

Hanukkah Night 6

Hanukkah, Night 5

No pictures or videos to share this time because I was being lazy -- but we had a great visit from Nanny and Papa for night 5 of Hanukkah last night, and not only did they bring presents for the kids but they also brought an entire Hanukkah meal including brisket and latkes! I am already looking at the time wondering if it's too early to get some leftovers out of the fridge... mmmm.... For dessert we broke into the Hanukkah tower from Harry & David that my parents sent us (thanks mom and dad!) - which included all kinds of goodies like chocolate covered pretzels, caramel corn, peppermint bark, and cookies. Ben got a remote control robot and a science kit, and Rebecca got a Barbie doll and some Barbie clothes. Ben rallied from not feeling well earlier in the afternoon and ate all of his brisket, but Rebecca chose to subsist entirely on broccoli for dinner last night. Thanks for the great visit Nanny and Papa!

Hanukkah Night 4

Ben's new bike....



And Rebecca's microphone....

Lazy 5 Ranch

Rebecca attended a birthday party at the Lazy 5 Ranch about an hour north of here this morning. It was a little chilly (okay a lot) but fun nonetheless.

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Hanukkah, Night 3

I asked Rebecca to model her new coat and boots, and this is what she came up with.

Hannukkah, Night 2

(Brought to you by Aunt Kathleen and Uncle Mike):

opening the Millenium Falcon...



and the Dippin' Dot Maker...



Flying the Falcon...

Just One More...

Hanukkah Night 1

For the first night of Hanukkah we gave the kids each a Pillow Pet, which they had both asked for. Ben likes to sleep with stuffed animals just as much as Becca does, and the pillow pets were a big hit. They had previously indicated which animal they wanted (Ben wanted a penguin and Becca wanted a purple unicorn). When I checked on them before I went to bed last night, they were both indeed fast asleep with their heads on their pillow pets ;) It was very cute. But I didn't get any pictures of that for fear of waking them up with the flash. Here instead is a short video of the candle lighting, and a pic of the kids with their presents:

Spying in the Age of Technology

Back in the old days we used to snoop around our parents' bedroom and in the attic looking to see where the birthday and Christmas presents might be stashed. I am sure Ben does this as well, but a couple of days ago I caught him perusing my blog and asked him what he was doing. To which he replied, "I'm looking to see if you wrote what you're giving me for Hanukkah!" (A panicked moment following during which I tried to recall if I had indeed written about any Hanukkah gifts, but I don't think I have). Ben, if you're reading this - YOU ARE GETTING WAY TOO SMART FOR ME!

Looks Like Ben Found Photo Booth on the new iMac...

New Gadgets

I am blogging from our early "family Hanukkah present" -- a new iMac. The long story short is that Joel's Hanukkah gift from me (also early) was an iPad, but his Macbook was so old he couldn't get the iPad synced up to it. And my work laptop is so old (getting a new one soon I think) that I couldn't even manage to get the requisite version of iTunes installed on that either to help him out.

So instead of upgrading the operating system, he decided to buy a new computer. That's logical, right? But really, it is, since we had been talking for a while about needing a family computer that Ben can do homework on and that I can use instead of using my work laptop for personal stuff, which is what I'd been doing for a while. So we got the iMac, and it's awesome. And Joel got his iPad working, and that's awesome too. The only thing we need to figure out how to do now is to transfer his iTunes library from the old Macbook to the new iMac. And we need a printer. And a desk. But all in good time... Happy early Hanukkah!!!

The real Hanukkah starts Wednesday night, by the way. So expect some posts on that topic as the kids start getting their gifts.

And by the way, Happy Thanksgiving

Apologies for the slew of blog posts just now (and one more coming I think). It has been a great Thanksgiving weekend with my sister and her family visiting from MA. We will be sad to see them go tomorrow! Thanksgiving day itself was great, with great food (of which I can really only take credit for the turkey) and great friends and family! Hope everyone had as good of a Thanksgiving as we did!

Big Fish

Today my kids had school, but Abby and Mike and I took Charlie and Amelia to the Concord Mills mall for a day of shopping. While there we checked out the Bass Pro shop, home to what must be the world's largest catfish. I tried to get Charlie in the picture for comparison. The fish is definitely bigger than he is.

A Continuing Tradition...

...Of trying to photograph uncooperative subjects.

Discovery Place Kids

On Saturday we took the kids and their cousins to the new Discovery Place Kids which just opened in Huntersville. It was FANTASTIC! The kids all had a blast. It was fun to watch them become so absorbed in imaginative play in every exhibit. Ben especially, who I worried might be outgrowing such things, threw himself into each exhibit whole-heartedly. In fact I often had to prod him along from one area to the next, because he wouldn't leave on his own. We spent a whole afternoon there, and could have stayed longer. Except, well, it closed for the night. We will definitely be making a return visit.

Toddler Bed

On Thanksgiving Day, Rebecca and her best friend Amelia (not to be confused with cousin Amelia) decided they wanted to get in and out of Rebecca's crib, and in and out again, and again, and again. The trouble was they couldn't do this by themselves, and Amelia's mom and I got tired of lifting them in and out over and over. After a glass of wine on an empty stomach, the logical conclusion seemed to be to dismantle the crib and turn it into a toddler bed, without any discussion or "prepping" Rebecca for this transition at all. So that's what we did. And then Rebecca and Amelia occupied themselves with jumping off the bed repeatedly, without assistance.

Fortunately for me (because otherwise Joel would never have let me hear the end of it) Rebecca has done great every night so far. She has not gotten out of bed at all, except for 5 minutes after the first time we put her in the bed on Thanksgiving night. We put a gate in her doorway before we go to bed, and take it down in the morning, since our bedroom is on the first floor and we don't want her wandering downstairs in the middle of the night.

Becca is very proud of her big girl bed!

Plugged In

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The Perks of helping

... to make chocolate cream pie!

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First Sleepover

Here is Ben heading off to his first sleepover.... and since Becca also has a sleepover tonight (at her grandparents) that means its PARTY TIME! Heading to Fleming's for dinner with friends.

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testing

Blogging from my phone... but how do I post a pic? Hmmm... oh here we go.... this was Ben from over the weekend insisting he needed gloves even though it was 65 degrees.

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Peek-a-Boo

Becca's teacher Alex took this picture of her at school the other day, sporting her new hat (courtesy of my friend Jessica who made it for her). Jessica, she has gotten lots of compliments on her hat already! Even though it's not really cold enough to wear it yet ;)

Because you can Never Have too Many Videos of Becca Dancing...

Ben, Global Economy Expert

This was a conversation that took place a few nights ago at the dinner table.

ME: Kids, do you know where your Uncle Mike is right now?

BEN: Where?

ME: He's in China.

BEN: But how can he talk to the people there? Does he speak Chinese?

BECCA: Chinese? Chinese is food!
ME: Yes that's right Becca, Chinese food comes from China.

BEN: *Everything* comes from China!

ME: Oh yeah? Why do you say that?
BEN: Because every time I look at the tag on one of my toys it says "made in China"!

Is it mid-week again? Time for an update!

Rebecca had some adorable pictures taken at preschool last week - check out the proofs here. I think I like the first three the best, but I haven't decided what to order yet.

I got a new cell phone, the Droid Incredible, and it's, well, incredible. It's also a tremendous time suck to have the internet in my pocket 24/7. And the games, lets not forget the games... Ben gives two enthusiastic thumbs up to Fruit Ninja and Angry Birds.

Becca's parent-teacher conference was this morning. Her teacher called her "incredibly strong-willed and intelligent" and said sometimes it's hard to believe she only just turned 3.

Along those "strong-willed" lines, Becca frequently snaps at Ben, and Ben frequently cries when she does so. Yesterday in the car it happened AGAIN (Ben moved back to the second row in the mini van, I think he's afraid to sit in the third row by himself in the dark so anyway they fight in the car again now). I told Ben, "You have to learn how to deal with it without crying!" To which he wailed, "But HOW? They don't teach that in school!"

UPDATE- I feel it necessary to add to this post that I heard from Becca's best friend's Mom today that Becca apparently told her she wouldn't be her friend anymore if she peed on the potty. So her friend peed in her pants. So not only is Becca still refusing to be potty trained, she's now trying to coerce others out of using the potty, too. Add "manipulative" to the list of adjectives describing my daughter.

Mid-Week Update

Because some of you complain when I go four days with no blog post... KATHLEEN! ;)

Car update - the new leather seats look awesome and make it look like a brand new car! (Smells like one too now). The only problem is there's a little latch on the bottom back of the two second row seats that you use to tether the top of a car seat to, and they accidentally forgot to slit the leather to allow those to be accessible. So Rebecca's car seat is not properly latched, and I am waiting for the dealership to call me back... they are supposed to send someone out to fix it so I don't have to bring it back in. Otherwise, the new car is great and maybe the greatest part is that since Ben has decided to take up residence in the 3rd row whenever we go anywhere, and Becca sits in the second row, THEY DON'T BICKER ANYMORE! They used to bicker continually as soon as we would get into the car.

Ben update - Ben is off for Veterans Day today. This morning in the car on the way to drop off Rebecca he announced that not only is it Veterans Day, but it's also Diwali. Then he explained all about Diwali. I was impressed with his knowledge of world culture, even though I thought Diwali was last week...? He's out enjoying the day with Nanny and Papa today, with lunch and a movie on the agenda - lucky boy.

Becca update - Becca attended her first dance/gymnastics class on Tuesday, courtesy of Nanny and Papa who signed her up for lessons every Tuesday after school at The Little Gym. I didn't go with her on Tuesday since I had to go pick up my car from the dealership, but starting on Tuesday Joel's parents will pick her up and take her to the class, which starts at 5, and I'll meet them there around 5:15 so I can watch most of it. From what I heard about her first class, she LOVED it!

Cake Decorating

Here's Ben hard at work earlier today decorating a cake for Joel's mom for her birthday. Note the chocolate around his mouth - he had to sample the frosting to make sure it was up to par. Happy birthday Nanny!

Goodbye Pilot, Hello Sienna

On Saturday (with mixed emotions I admit) I traded in my 2008 Honda Pilot for a 2009 Toyota Sienna. We worked out the trade so it was pretty much even-steven, except for the fact that we paid a little extra for them to upgrade it to leather seats. The Pilot was practical in theory - it had a third row and could seat 7 or possibly even 8 people, it's just that some of those 8 people would be very uncomfortable and might possibly be required to enter and exit the car through the trunk. The Sienna seats 7 people comfortably without anyone having to climb over anything, and 8 people with maybe just a little bit of climbing... So far the kids seem to like the new ride, but Ben lamented about the loss of my Obama '08 bumper sticker. I told him we can get another in 2012.

Bedtime Routine

Rebecca's bedtime routine has undergone a shift lately. It seems that I am her 3rd choice to conduct the bedtime rituals. Joel is her favorite now, and if he's not around she turns to Ben, who is usually quite happy to comb her hair, brush her teeth, read her stories and sing her songs. Last night Joel had a late meeting at work, and so Becca as usual insisted on Ben doing all her bedtime duties. Mom was relegated to the position of camera man.

Rockin' the Vote (or boat)

Or, the "boat" as Rebecca called it - "come on, it's time to get on the boat!" I think she was disappointed, and confused when we arrived at the polling place and not a boat was to be found. Ben was disappointed that Barack Obama was not on the ballot, but he cheered up when we told him he could write it in.

Report Card, and Popcorn Update

Ben's first quarter conference was Friday, at which we received a copy of his report card. It was the first time that Joel and I got to meet his new teacher, Mrs. Day, whose class he's been in for only three weeks. His original teacher, Ms. Bean was at the conference as well, to provide input on Ben's progress during his time in her classroom.

As usual the conference was unsurprising-- Ben needs to focus on neatness with his handwriting, and on being more responsible with his belongings. On the 3-2-1 scale that's used until 3rd grade, he got a "2" (inconsistently meets expectations) on "takes care of materials", and 3s in everything else. His teacher also mentioned that he sprawls back in his desk chair (I used to do this too), and that can be very fidgeting in the hallways and in line.

I guess it's her job to make sure we understand all the things he needs to work on, because she only mentioned his reading as an afterthought, which has already surpassed the level the first graders are expected to achieve by the end of the school year. She also called him "sweet" and excited about learning, but she also - which Joel took great offense to - called him "average" as in, "he's a nice all-around average kid" or words to that effect. My kid? Average?!

For those of you looking for a popcorn update - the web site is having issues so it is not tracking Ben's online orders, so I don't know how much money Ben has raised online. I know Kathleen ordered (thank you!) and my mom tried (try harder!), but I don't know what his total is. He did, with Joel's help, sell $218 in door-to-door sales, however when I posted the $200 challenge I was thinking (though did not explicitly state) that this applied to online orders only (note the wild back-pedaling).

If you still want to order, the sale ends Wednesday I believe. Scroll down to the popcorn post below for the link, and read the comment I posted about what to do if it switches to saying "supporting no one" when you click through to make your order. The chocolatey caramel crunch, I can say with good authority, is DELICIOUS!

Very Frightening

Hammer-wielding ear-less Halloween kitty:

Halloween 2010

Trailblazer Day

Yesterday I took Ben (with Rebecca in tow) to Trailblazer Day at Belk Scout Camp, which is located somewhere in the middle of nowhere about 40 minutes from here. Trailblazer day is a day of scouting activities (target shooting, archery, fishing, etc) for scouts and their families that is attended, we discovered, by WAY too many people. We spent an hour and a half waiting in line for a turn at the target practice, then spent half an hour waiting in line for lunch. Then after lunch we spent half an hour in line for the climbing tower, at which point it was announced that they were shutting down promptly at 2pm and anyone towards the back of the line (like us) might as well give up because we weren't going to get a turn. Ben totally lost it at this news, and began stomping around and crying and calling the event organizers "stupid" and "ridiculous" and I am afraid I had to agree with him. This event would have worked much better if it took place during several weekends with the local scouts attending on an assigned day, rather than everyone at once. Ben only got a chance to do one activity the entire time we were there. Rebecca, fortunately, was quite well behaved and waited happily in line never realizing that she was never actually going to get to do anything ;) Joel was at work, and missed all the "fun".

Buy Some Popcorn, Watch Ben Throw a Pie

Click on this link to order some popcorn and help Ben raise money for his cub scout troop. Here are the reasons why you should do this:

1. Popcorn is yummy

2. If you don't like popcorn, you can make a donation instead and popcorn will get sent to our troops overseas.

3. If Ben sells $400 worth of popcorn, he gets to throw a pie in his scout master's face.

I am going to sweeten the deal - if Ben sells $200 worth of popcorn, I will let him throw a pie in MY face. And I will videotape it and post it here. How can you pass that up?? So far, he has sold, uh, $0. And the sale ends Saturday. So help him out, and buy some overpriced popcorn. 70% of your purchase will go directly to his cub scout troop, to help offset the cost of field trips and activities.

EDITOR'S NOTE: I edited the link above so that it should say "supporting Ben K" on the upper right hand side of the page - if it doesn't, let me know.

Evil Jester and Bad Kitty

Rebecca insists she's going to be a "bad kitty" for Halloween, and runs around making clawing motions at the air saying, "I'm a bad kitty! GGrrrrrr..."

Frighteningly cute, maybe?

Too Young for Dinner Theatre

That's the conclusion I've come to after taking the kids to a dinner/ performance at Rebecca's preschool last night. On paper it sounded like a good idea - a picnic-style pizza dinner followed by a performance by a local children's theater group. And it was FREE! I mean, what could be better?

In practice, I discovered that when you put a hundred preschool aged kids (and some older siblings) in a big room with no chairs dangerously close to bedtime, MASS CHAOS ensues.

Enough said.

BOO!

Another obligatory seasonal picture. I carved this pumpkin (using a stencil of course) while complaining every 5 minutes about why Ben had to choose the hardest pattern, while Ben wandered back and forth between me and the Phillies game asking "What are you doing now? What are you doing now? Are you done yet? Are you done yet? What's that?" I think he was pretty pleased with the result though. I think it came out pretty well considering the fact that I was rushing to get it done so Ben could go to bed.

Phillies Fans

Carolina Blue

Look at this sky, people. LOOK AT IT!

Because it's Fall

And when it's fall, you must take pictures of children with pumpkins, if you have access to both. It's some kind of law or something.

Hoops

TGIF

The potty train is back in the station. While Rebecca is happy to hold her bodily functions while we're out and about, apparently once we get home the living room floor, my bed, etc are all perfectly acceptable places to, shall we say, "let go". I sent her to preschool in underpants on Monday and Tuesday but I guess preschool is like her second home so she had no particularly strong desire to be continent there either. So. Back in pull-ups, and maybe we'll try again in another week or so...

Besides the potty news (or lack thereof) not much is going on. It has been a very busy week at work since it's coming up on election day. At least there is a light at the end of the tunnel.

Ben was transferred into a new classroom at school. He finished his first week in Mrs. Day's class today. The first grade was too crowded, so they added a 7th (yes, 7th!) first grade class and transferred a few of the kids from each existing class into it. The new teacher is not really new, she's been the literacy facilitator at the school for years and has experience teaching both first and second grades. Ben seems to like her so far. He also likes the fact that his new classroom is one of the mobile classrooms. Mom is not so thrilled about that, but of course the kids would think that's cool I guess!

Joel's college roommates Jon and Tim arrived today for a visit, so it's sure to be a fun weekend!

The Potty Train is Leaving the Station...

...Whether Rebecca is ready or not. I decided that IT'S TIME. So this morning I put Rebecca in underwear and we all headed out to Hodge's Dairy farm. The GPS took us an ass-backwards way to get there, which took about twice as long as necessary (we realized once we got there). Meaning that Rebecca's first car trip sans diaper was nearly an hour.

Hodges Dairy farm has a pumpkin patch, a corn maze, a petting zoo, pony rides, and a hay ride. What is doesn't really have is a bathroom. And since I didn't want to traumatize Rebecca by making her use a port-a-potty (those things are scary enough for grownups) we went potty-less for a good three hours. Three nerve-wracking hours, during which time I was surreptitiously feeling Rebecca's tushie to make sure she hadn't just peed on the seat she was sharing with a nice grandma on the hay ride....

But I am happy and impressed to say that she made it home without having an accident! Until about 20 minutes after we got home, when she pooped in her underpants. Maybe she's just not clear yet on the "no pooping in your underpants" rule. We'll have to work on that one.

The Jig is Up

Every school morning (lately) Ben climbs into my bed and asks for a granola bar for breakfast. This is convenient for me because I don't have to prepare anything, and convenient for him because I let him watch TV in my bed while he eats it and I go get Becca ready. So I thought it was a win-win situation.

Except, while bending down to pick up a stray sock, I just found all those granola bars. Under my bed. With at most two or three bites taken of each.

THE JIG IS UP BEN!!!!

Back to Reality!!

Sorry for the lack of blogging. On Friday night my friend Jessica arrived for a visit from Philadelphia, and seeing as how it was her first trip to Charlotte we had a lot on our "to do" list including eating at a variety of establishments (Pinkberry, Miro, Big Daddy's), go places (Carolina Raptor Center, US National Whitewater Center), and threw in some errands and schlepping of kids to birthday parties and doctor appointments in there as well.

We took Rebecca to her 3 year old well exam yesterday, where she weighed in at 32 pounds and change, and measured at 39 inches (90th percentile for height). She was not particularly thrilled to be at the doctor, but she didn't need any shots, just the nasal flu vaccine, so she was reasonably accomodating with that.

After dropping her off at preschool and doing a couple errands, Jessica and I headed to the US National Whitewater Center, with an original plan of maybe doing some rock climbing, but soon changed our minds and instead did flat water kayaking, and the aerial adventure course and climb-to-zip line. Afterwards we relaxed at the rivers edge cafe with some chili and beer and sweet potato fries. Today my arms are totally sore from the kayaking and the adventure course. But I'm quite pleased that we went to the USNWC because my only prior time there was with the kids, and we weren't able to do much. They have a lot more stuff there than I realized, including geo-caching and some additional zip line stuff opening soon. So now that it's back on my radar screen I am definitely going to get back there!

Today I am trying to get back into the work-routine, the blogging routine, laundry routine, etc. Back to reality!!

More Birthday Pics

These are a few of the pictures that were taken at the party by Becca's friend Laney's dad. Thanks for the great pictures, Shawn!

Birthday Video

Happy Birthday Becca!!

Saturday was Rebecca's 3rd birthday. We had a party with all her friends, and BOTH sets of grandparents! Rebecca seemed very happy with all the attention and the gifts from all her friends. She had been asking me multiple times a week for the last 3 months (ever since Ben's birthday) when it was going to be her birthday! I think it lived up to her expectations. Below are some pictures from the party, and later I will post some video of her blowing out her birthday candles after I have had a chance to upload that. Happy birthday Becca!

I am the Princess

Crazy Hair

Thanks to the generosity of family, Ben has achieved his own personal goal in his school fundraiser -- getting enough pledges for the Crazy Hair prize.

Just a Little Hectic

It's been a busy weekend and I'm gearing up for a busy week! Weekend activities included Yom Kippur services (for Joel anyyway - I stayed home with the kids), a Break Fast at a friend's house, a birthday party (of the grownup variety, for one of our neighbors), Cub Scouts, the Panthers game (Joel went with a friend), and grocery shopping.

This week Joel is at a conference in Dallas from tonight until Friday night. I am left managing the kids, a full week at work, and a last-minute to-do list for Rebecca's birthday party on Saturday, as well as getting ready to host Mom and Dad from Thursday night - Sunday, and dealing with an altered school schedule because Rebecca is off Thursday and Friday for Sukkot.

Ben's doing a fundraiser for school that has required a bit of my attention this week as well, and homework (which was slow to get started) is now in full gear with spelling homework 4 nights a week, reading 4 nights a week, math homework 2 nights a week, and weekly spelling tests.

So- busy, busy! But looking forward to a great weekend with Mom and Dad and an awesome 3rd birthday celebration for Becca!!

Yogurt Happy Hour

Becca and her classmates Mira, Amelia, Sophia, Obi and Ben checking out the fountain after "yogurt happy hour" at TCBY tonight.

My Cute Little Cub Scout

Ben's first Cub Scout meeting was yesterday. His troop meets at the JCC and includes his friends Jared, Spencer and Harris. Joel's report about the first meeting was that it was rather disorganized and they really didn't do much. Hopefully that will change as things get in gear. The cub scouts do get to do some fun things, such as a weekend trip to Charleston where they get to tour a battleship, sleep on an aircraft carrier, and go to the aquarium the following day. Ben's already excited about that, though they don't do that until spring.

Movie Night

Last night our neighbors set up a movie projector in their driveway and the neighborhood kids (and adults) gathered to watch Diary of a Wimpy Kid. It was a fun evening with popcorn for the kids and beer and wine for the adults, marred only by a couple of drops of rain towards the very end to make the grownups nervous. The rain never materialized, and everyone had a good time!

The Potty Train

A couple weeks back Joel and I were discussing needing to potty train Rebecca (from the financial perspective of not wanting to pay for diapers anymore). Rebecca overheard us and yelled, "NO! I don't want to go on the potty train!"

And, she really doesn't. Despite her third birthday rapidly looming, and despite the full cognitive awareness of the business one is supposed to do in the potty, she really wants no part of it. She'll pee on the potty when coaxed (though is usually not happy to do so) and a couple of times done Number Two on the potty (and she's even less happy about that). But she does not actually WANT to use the potty.

I have tried bribing her with M&Ms, fruit snacks, and Hello Kitty underpants, all to no avail. Yesterday I decided to put her in underpants for the day, since she was home with me and I was working so we weren't going anywhere. She managed to avoid an accident (with frequent bathroom reminders which she resisted every time) until later in the afternoon when she very quietly peed while sitting on my bed (and thereafter insisted she had not peed and nothing was amiss).

This morning her second attempt at wearing underpants ended when she pooped in her underpants (completely without warning and without telling anyone).

I know everyone says to relax - your kid won't go to Kindergarten wearing diapers!

But mine just might.

L'Shana Tova!

Ben spent the day at services with his dad and granddad at Temple Beth Shalom in Hickory (where Joel's dad is the rabbi). He reportedly was extremely well behaved and attentive - way to go Ben! Proud of you! I spent the day multi-tasking in grand style -- working, while watching Rebecca (who was home from preschool for the holiday), and cooking my first Rosh Hashana dinner - which turned out pretty respectably, if I do say so myself, thanks in large part to the invention known as the crock pot. L'Shana Tova everyone - have a happy, safe and healthy 5771!

Labor Day Weekend

Our Labor Day weekend festivities included a block party, an anniversary dinner for Joel's parents at Maggiano's, going to the Matthews Alive Labor Day festival, and hosting a barbecue with our friends Eric and Joanna & kids, where the boys used a sprinkler at the bottom of our slide to create what they named The Mud Pit of Doom... and then took turns sliding into it. And eventually, rolling around in it. Ah, boys...

The Mud Slide:

Curriculum Night

Curriculum night at Ben's school was last night. Joel expressed interest in going, so we agreed that he would go while I stayed home with the kids. He was under strict orders to pay careful attention so that he could report back to me on everything. He seemed to take this responsibility pretty seriously, even offering to take notes, which I told him was not necessary as long as he promised to pay attention.

So, as one might by now have guessed, he came home from Curriculum Night totally confused and not having paid much attention at all apparently (choosing instead, he admitted, to spend most of the time wondering why Ben's teacher is unmarried). He said Ben's homework schedule was so complicated that he had no idea what his teacher was talking about for most her explanation, found Ben's daily schedule to be utterly bewildering, and signed me up to volunteer in the classroom while neglecting to write down which day he'd signed me up for.

I told him he's not allowed to go to Curriculum Night any more to which he replied, "Don't you know I'm not good in classroom settings?"

No News

Not much has been going on the past week - we spent the weekend pretty quietly, the kids each had a play date (Becca on Saturday and Ben on Sunday), and since then we've been settling into the back to school routine. Ben has not been very communicative about first grade, except to say he likes his teacher. His general attitude in the mornings has been good, and he's had no complaints about going to school or getting on the bus, so I guess that means things are going well.

I do have some complaints about the bus - his bus driver yesterday was 30 minutes late (so much for those business cards he handed out the first day). He was fired or reassigned, not sure which, and a new driver was assigned to our route. He also got off the bus this morning and introduced himself, and promised to be on time (7:55). We'll see how that goes.

In the afternoons Ben rides the school bus home on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and so far the bus has yet to arrive on time (3:02).The other three days he gets picked up by the JCC to go to their after school program. So far that arrangement is working out fine though I do usually have to remind him in the morning which bus he's getting on in the afternoon.

In other non-news, I am in the process of planning Rebecca's 3rd birthday party, I signed Ben up for Cub Scouts (but it doesn't start for another week or so), and I finally got my DVR all installed and set up, though it required two visits from DirecTV, one visit from Time Warner, and possibly will require a visit from our security alarm company because the Time Warner guy may have screwed that up -- not sure if our alarm is being monitored or not any more. I suppose I could set it off on purpose to find out, but that doesn't appeal to me for some reason...

Hummingbird Rescue

This hummingbird somehow found its way into our garage yesterday afternoon and spent over two hours flying around up near the ceiling, unable to find his way back out. I guess hummingbirds must not be terrifically bright. After a while we decided to take matters into our own hands and enlisted the help of a couple of our neighbors. Our neigbor Howie finally caught the hummingbird with the aid of a step ladder and a lacrosse stick, and threw it out the garage door to freedom.

I was a little disappointed, because our neighbor Kevin was in the process of plugging in his shop vac, for Plan B - attempting to suck the hummingbird right out of the air. I would have liked to see how that would have turned out.

At the Bus Stop

As it turns out, I left my camera battery charger in Boone, it seems. So I had to make do with my cell phone this morning for the obligatory first-day-of-school pictures. Hence the poor quality. I am going to try to stop by the camera store today to see if I can get a new one.

Last year during the first part of the year Ben's bus was always late - sometimes as much as 15 minutes late. After numerous complaints the driver was eventually reassigned. Today I was quite pleased to see that not only did Ben's bus arrive promptly at 7:55, but the bus driver handed out business cards to all the parents with his name and cell phone number, with instructions to call his cell phone if he is ever late. Seems like a good start.

Good luck on your first day of school, Ben!

Scavenger Hunt

This morning I took Ben to his elementary school's Open House day to meet his new first grade teacher, Ms. Bean. She is very tall, very skinny, and Ben hid behind me when I tried to introduce him to her. But she seemed nice. I got Ben's school supply list, and tonight I embarked on the annual scavenger hunt, which took about 3 hours and 3 stores to complete. (Minus one pink beveled eraser, which I just couldn't seem to find).

The item that took the longest to find were four black Marble composition books. You know, those ones you see ALL THE TIME and never buy because who wants a notebook without perforated sheets? Anyway, I totally couldn't find them in 3 different stores. Then finally, as I was about to give up for the evening, there they were: exactly four black marble composition books, sitting all by themselves on top of a shelf of other stuff near the register. Heavenly light shone down on them, angels sang, and I quick grabbed them before anyone could beat me to them.

School starts Wednesday. We've been sleeping until 7:45 all summer, and now we're going to need to be heading out the door to the bus stop at 7:45. Tomorrow we're going to do a dry run - I set Ben's alarm to 6:50. He doesn't know it yet though. It's sure to be a pleasant morning.

Final Days of Vacation

We wrapped up our last few days of vacation at home - Friday we went swimming, went out to dinner/listened to music at one of the outdoor summer concerts, and took care of the unpacking/laundry/grocery shopping.

Saturday we went to a bike store looking for a more comfortable seat for my bike. The bike store turned out not to be a good idea because a) there was a big dog in the store and Rebecca was afraid of it and b) Ben knocked over like four bikes. I was outside with Rebecca so didn't witness it, but Joel claims Ben knocked over like $10,000 worth of bicycles. We left in a hurry without purchasing anything, with both children crying, and went to Dick's instead. Much better idea.

Saturday evening was a much more enjoyable time, because Joel's parents babysat the kids. Joel and I went to a wine tasting at Total Wines and bought a few bottles of wine, had dinner at Dean & DeLuca, dessert at Pinkberry (of course) and saw Scott Pilgrim vs. the World.

Today we ventured out on a disastrous bike ride on the Greenway (both kids very whiny and refused to ride their bikes after a while). Upon reflecting that it was 87 degrees and we hadn't brought any water bottles along with us, we conceded that maybe this was partially our fault. Then, out of near total boredom, we went to the pet store and played with some puppies, and the kids and I all begged Daddy for a puppy, but he said we could not buy a puppy on a whim. Probably a good decision. Though they were very cute puppies.

Tomorrow Becca goes back to preschool, and Joel and I go back to work. Ben doesn't start school until Wednesday, but he has his Open House to meet his teacher tomorrow morning, and then his grandparents are taking him to lunch and a movie, so he should be pretty well occupied for tomorrow at least.

Tweetsie Railroad

We packed up this morning, and drove to Blowing Rock to drop off the keys to the cabin. We walked around the pretty downtown area, had lunch, and then drove the couple of miles to Tweetsie Railroad, a Western-themed amusement park that features a 30 minute train ride around the park in an old-style locomotive. Upon approaching the train Rebecca started doing her jumping-up-and-down-screaming fit, so (having learned the lesson yesterday) I stayed off with her and Joel and Ben took the train around the park themselves.

It was overcast and drizzling at times, but we still had a fun time at the park checking out all the attractions and going on lots of rides. Rebecca went on the merry-go-round 3 times, but besides that, she seems to have developed a sudden fear of anything that moves. We'll have to monitor that. Ben went on every ride he could find, including a couple that I wouldn't go on -- the ferris wheel (something about a ferris wheel on the side of a mountain in the rain that didn't appeal to me) and the Free Fall (which Becca called "the up and down").

Pictures:

Whitewater Rafting

Yesterday we drove into Tennessee (about an hour from where we were staying) for an ill-fated whitewater rafting trip on the Watauga River. It was billed as a "family rafting trip", suitable for ages 2 1/2 and up.

On the upside, the drive to and from Tennessee was very scenic, the river was pretty, the rain held off, and Ben enjoyed the rafting, which was for the most part just paddling through calm waters, with some very minor rapids in a couple of spots, and one small section of class 3 rapids. It would have been quite enjoyable, had it not been for the fact that Rebecca spent about 90% of the time jumping up and down screaming "I WANT TO GET OFF! I WANT TO GET OFF! I WANT TO GET OFF!" (She spent the other 10% of the time whimpering and talking to a family of ducks).

Joel threatened several times to kill me for forcing this adventure upon us, knowing the unpredictable temperament of our daughter. So, I take full responsibility for possibly having caused permanent psychological trauma to her, but I still insist that the day wasn't a total failure.

More Vacation Pictures

Some more highlights of our vacation so far include trout fishing (no pictures of the actual trout fishing because I was too busy doing the fishing, though I did get a picture of Ben eating one for dinner), Linville Caverns, Linville Falls, making s'mores in the wood-burning fire place (it keeps raining in the evening, preventing us from being able to use the outdoor fire pit), Mast General Store, and dinner at the Daniel Boone Inn.

Grandfather Mountain

(Or "Grandpa's Mountain" as Rebecca called it). I rediscovered my fear of heights. It was very pretty though, despite the fog.

A Positive Outlook

We headed up to Boone, NC today to begin our four night stay. The two hour drive was uneventful except for Ben's constant complaint that he didn't see any mountains (clearly false by the end of the trip; I think he was just being contrary because he was hungry).

The cabin we're renting, named A Positive Outlook, is beautiful! We settled in, took a little drive around town, did some grocery shopping, and grilled some hotdogs and hamburgers for dinner, and put Rebecca to bed. By the time all of that was completed it was 9pm, and yet Ben still insisted we should go check out the fire pit outside and see if we could get a fire going. We managed to accomplish a small one, after a while, since it was damp from an afternoon rain storm. But Ben got to toast some marshmallows, and was very happy -- until that is, I accidentally mentioned the B word (bears). All of a sudden he stood up and announced he was ready to go to bed! He says he'll be ready to do some s'mores around the camp fire tomorrow night, though. Hopefully by then he'll have forgotten about the B-E-A-R-S.

Tomorrow, provided we have good weather, we're going to check out Grandfather Mountain. But for now, below are some pictures of the cabin - enjoy!

Last Day of Camp

It's hard to believe it, but today is Ben's last day of summer camp. Where did the summer go?? Next week we are on vacation, and the week after that Ben starts 1st grade. I repeat -- where did the summer go???

We are eagerly anticipating the arrival of our friends Jason and Adina and their daughter Chaya (age 3). They should be arriving later today. It will be their first time visiting us here in NC, though we've vacationed with them in various other locations the past two summers.

On Sunday we are heading up to Boone, NC, in the Appalachian mountains, where we will be staying in a brand new 4 bedroom log cabin. The kids are very excited that we're going to the mountains, though I am not sure exactly what they expect - Pretty sure Rebecca expects it to be cold and snowy there, as she keeps trying to tell me we need to bring her winter hat. Hope she is not too disappointed about that. We are expecting the weather to be pleasantly cooler than here in Charlotte - in the upper 70s, which will be a wonderful break from the 90+ heat we've had daily for what seems like months on end...

We've asked around about things to do in the area, and gotten a pretty good list of things to do and see during our stay... so stay tuned to read all about it!

The Love Affair with Pinkberry Continues

But what better way to cool off after a 95 degree day than a little pre-dinner Pinkberry "appetizer" (as Ben called it) followed by a splash in the fountain outside? We were joined by Becca's friends (and fellow frozen yogurt fans) Mira and Amelia. Everyone enjoyed their swirly goodness. Two mental notes: 1. Pinkberry is only FIVE MINUTES from Becca's preschool. 2. Ben and this whole reading thing is getting dangerous - he said to me, "Hey Mom, how come you're a fan of Pinkberry on Facebook?" I said, "How did you know that?" He said, "I was reading your Facebook page on the computer the other day." Too smart, too smart. That kid is getting way too smart. Pretty soon he'll discover the blog and call me out for writing something or other.