Room cleaning, week 3

I had Melissa pick up her clothes Wednesday night, so Friday should have been easy.  But she tried to pull a fast one, throwing everything into her closet and declaring, "all done!"

Mommy wasn't fooled, and ordered a real pick up.  Melissa dug in her heels, all the way until bedtime.

Saturday morning after breakfast, Matthew got to play video games since he had cleaned his room, and without drama, too.  I told Melissa she was welcome to join him for some TV after she cleaned her room.  "I can't do it," she tearfully declared.  "I can't do it!"  I was firm and there was much stomping and wailing.  Then it got quiet, and 20 minutes later she came down.  "I clean my room!"  And she had.

Speaking of cleaning rooms, here's another take on the subject:

Parents' dilemma

It is quiet. The kids are asleep, even Isaac (in his mother's arms). Rachel and I can have a quiet conversation together, or even be quiet and hear ourselves think.

It's also 11:30.

This is when we start thinking, "I need to go to bed soon, or I'll be tired tomorrow." But also, "if I go to bed, it will seem like less time before the kids are up. So I'd rather stay up and enjoy the peace."

Eventually sanity always prevails. Eventually.

Matthew the monkey

Craft time

Craft time
Originally uploaded by jbellis

Matthew was painting a model boat. (The boat is the blue object.)

Here he is cleaning the paint off the floor (by which I mean, smearing it around) after he tracked it there with his socks, which is why they are next to him instead of on his feet.

His shirt was already a casualty; it's behind him.

As far as I know, he did not get any paint on his pants.

The best day ever

Matthew was looking forward to Monday. I'll let his teacher explain:

Matthew has been just a joy! In fact this morning he was on announcements for winning the CHAMP of the week. His picture will be posted in the front of the school hallway. He won out of all K, 1, and 2nd grade. Children receive blue tickets when they are caught showing good character. Their name is placed in a box and one name is drawn every Friday from the K, 1st, and 2nd box. He was the winner this week and since this is the first week we have started the system he is the first winner as well. He receive a metal this morning. You should be proud!

You, gentle reader, have it easy: before Rachel mailed his teacher (about his report card -- she volunteered the rest), we'd slowly puzzled out much of the above from fragmented kindergartener explanations. ("I got a blue ticket!" "Why?" "They caught me doing champs!" "What's champs?" "I don't know." Later, I explain to Rachel, "they caught him doing stamps." "Not stamps!" Matthew interrupted angrily. Maybe he thought I was making a joke at his expense, but I couldn't remember. "Well, something like that. What was it?" "I don't know." In another moment of lucidity he explained that it had to do with being quiet while the teacher talks and sitting with your legs crossed. So we supposed it was something good.)

The initial ticket was last week. Then, Matthew told us, they were going to draw all the blue ticket names from a hat "in front of the whole school!" And if your name comes out, you get a medal!

Matthew was sure his name was going to be drawn. I tried to prepare him for a let down: "all the other kids want their name to come out, too. It's all right if it's not yours." But he was sure, and I warned Rachel as I left to work, "he is going to be really pissed after school." Matthew does not take disappointment well.

Instead, he came home on cloud nine. His name really was drawn. God loves Matthew, I guess.

So, that is why he couldn't wait til Monday. It was a little surreal: normally little disappointments draw out the Grumpy Matthew inside. But today little pleasures drew out the Happy Matthew instead. He opened the lunch Rachel packed last night, and exclaimed, "Fruit salad! I love fruit salad! This is the best lunch ever!"

A high standard to live up to

Rachel just got off the phone with her dad. Apparently The Savage Peanut is her Grandma's home page.

I don't think I've ever been on a home page before. Wow. That's pretty cool.

Hi, Grandma!

The downside to 1:00 church

The downside to 1:00 church
Originally uploaded by jbellis

Or is it an upside? Melissa fell asleep on my lap.

More Melissisms

When shown by her Daddy how to play a game that was a little too tricky for her yet, "Daddy, I just a small girl."

If asked to do something she doesn't want to do we'll hear a sad voice, "Mama, I got a belly ache. I need to go to da doctor." (It doesn't work, instead if she's "sick" she can lie down for a nap.)

At an Italian restaurant: "Can I have macaroni pizza?" (meaning pepperoni)

"Daddy! Look! Mommy made pony hair!" She twirled around to show off the pony tail. She actually likes having her hair done now and insists on it every day. I kind of wish she wanted it just brushed and in ringlets, but she wants a hair-do.

They grow up so fast. Melissa announced to me that on her next birthday she'll turn 20! Whatever happened to years 4-19?

Every day we walk to Matthew's school to pick him up in the afternoons. We pass a man with his two golden retrievers on the way each day and Melissa has to pet them. They stand as tall as Melissa and are extremely kid-tolerant. She's not a bit afraid of those two big dogs. She hugs them, chatters at them as if they can understand her (who knows? perhaps they can) and giggles if they lick her cheek.

Since the job market is rather tight right now and is likely to remain tight for princess applicants for the foreseeable future, Jon and I are trying to direct Melissa's attention to more practical/productive career paths. Her dress up box is going to contain more than frilly dresses and ridiculous jewelery. I found some adorable pink scrubs (with a working stethoscope!) for Melissa to dress up as a doctor or nurse. I can't wait to give them to her on her birthday. She informed me a few days ago that she wanted to work with computers Just Like Daddy when she grows up. We'd be in favor of that. A programmer's uniform is pretty simple though, a free t-shirt and a pair of jeans. Voila!

That's not ice cream

That's not ice cream
Originally uploaded by jbellis

Like her uncles David and Chris, Melissa likes butter. Straight.

How to drive your brother crazy

How to drive your brother crazy
Originally uploaded by jbellis

Play "Calling all Cars." Make no effort to attack other cars or catch the criminal.

Poor Matthew kept offering to show her what to do. But she was happy just driving around.

Isaac is the necessity of invention

Isaac is the necessity of invention
Originally uploaded by jbellis

Isaac is old enough to grow easily bored but not yet able to crawl and entertain himself that way.

Having exhausted the baby toy isle at walmart, anything not obviously dangerous is likely to be pressed into service.

Downsides to living in San Anonio

• The churrascarias are twice the price as in Utah. Literally. (But less expensive than the one I ate at in Chicago. I was hungry, and I thought I knew the drill: who needs to see a menu?)
  
• Woot updates at midnight instead of at 11 PM. I am old now and almost never still awake at midnight. The really good woots are always gone by morning.
• Only McDonald's has play areas. And possibly Joe's Crab Shack but we tried that once and even seafood-loving Rachel was underwhelmed. Plus I can't help but think "I got the crabs at Joe's" when I see the sign.
• Major commuting freeway stretches with only two lanes in each direction? Seriously?
• No community orchestra (!)
• All the good Ultimate fields are in use by high school football teams
• There are no bike paths in the outer parts. Downtown, yes. Suburbia, no. (This one's for you, Dad.)

Frontier justice

Frontier justice
Originally uploaded by jbellis

This appeared on the wall of the mens' room at work.

The PTA bulletin finds its purpose

The PTA bulletin finds its purpose
Originally uploaded by jbellis

It isn't really any less useful missing a couple sheets.

The room wars, week 2

We ended up only moving Melissa's toys to the toy room.  I had her pick up her clothes each night with the result that her Friday clean only took ten minutes and no whining.

Matthew took 3 hours to clean his room.  And by clean his room I mean, complain bitterly in between being sent out to put things away -- so Rachel could throw one of his treasured scraps of paper away without him being the wiser.  (And by scraps I mean literally scraps: shreds of ripped-up paper.  Matthew is a pack rat.)  Rachel got about half the toys out, too.

And yet Matthew asked me tonight if he can do extra chores "to get dollars" so he can buy stuff: "if you buy lots of stuff at school you can choose what you get."  (Somebody needs to be deprogrammed from the fund raising brain washing.)  The obvious reply was, "you couldn't even clean your room without complaining, and you want me to pay you to do chores?"  But I was in Burned Out End of the Day Mode so my tired brain resorted to the default defense: "I'll talk it over with Mommy."

More gender-appropriate activity

More gender-appropriate activiity
Originally uploaded by jbellis

Melissa doesn't ONLY do girly stuff. She just likes it a LOT.

Lord of the dance

Lord of the dance
Originally uploaded by jbellis

Matthew is at a birthday party. Unknown to him I came back to the play gym and got his sister a ticket too.

I found Matthew on the dance floor. He stayed there until they roped it off to show a movie.

Matthew is one of two or three boys among a dozen little girls.

(The action shots came out too blurry so you're stuck with this.)

Semantics

"I'm going to take a quick shower," I announced. "Actually," I teased, "maybe I'll take a Mommy shower," meaning not quick.

"Okay," Rachel said. "You get in the shower, and I'll hand you Isaac."

Doh!

(Isaac tolerated the shower, but there were no wiggles and grins of delight as in the bathtub.)

Melissa's world

Melissa climbed onto my lap, dressed in full princess costume. I decided I was the Dragon. "Do you know what dragons do with princesses? They eat them!" The I tickled her and gave her "blowfishes" while she squealed her approval.

Then she kissed me. "You a prince!"

"What do princes do with princesses?"

She thought about that.

"They dance!"

Welcome Jedidiah!

I see your father lost his bid to name you "Iron Stallion Ellis IV." Dodged a bullet there, kiddo. 1 hour of labor, my goodness you were in a hurry to get here!!! You picked fantastic parents too, very good call little one. Your Uncle Jon and Aunt Rachel are sure excited to meet you someday soon.

Congratulations Grant and Lisa! We're so happy for you!

(Jonathan adds: I'm glad that my brother was able to name his son Jedidiah since Rachel didn't let me. Little "Jedi!")