Happy Graduation Gavin, on to bigger and badder things...

Gavin had a big graduation celebration from preschool this year. The wedding of Jack and Jill. The whole theme was nursery rhyme motivated: Jack in the Box (buddy Jack), Three Blind Mice (Carly and friends), Jack and Jill (Tommy and Paige), Little Ms. Muffett (Emma, not so happy), Three Little Pigs (Brenna and friends), Little Boy Blue (Gavin-awesome)...you get the picture...

The kids seemed to enjoy it and did a great job telling the story and going along with the theme. most of them knew their lines and most of them held up OK. Jack and Jill drove away happily ever after to the "reception".

All the kids received diplomas after the play which meant playing, impatiently waiting and pretend swords after...

The reception was very nice. Lots of food for wedding goers and the kids. They had a cake, cookie trays, dancing, everything. Gavin had a blast and we were one of the last people there. We closed down the wedding and the bar (juice of course).

Gavin even asked me to dance...

Gavin will be off to kindergarten in the fall. He will go to school with some friends from preschool and daycare (Emma, Carly, Brenna, Tommy). He has known all of them since he was way little. Tommy and Emma were 4 or 5 months old and Gavin was 3 months old when they first met at daycare. Brenna started later that year and Carly came to Salem Crossroads Daycare (SCDC)soon after in the toddler years. I have been grateful for SCDC since soon after finding them. We have been able to rely on them for care of children but for being a positive influence for our family. They have taken great care of Gavin for a long time. He will still go there for on and off the bus but summer is already different. There are friends missing (school is over and we are back to daycare only). Gavin will miss Nathan (dancing picture, shirt and tie) and Jack (dancing picture, orange shirt) very badly. They all three will go to three different schools. They are pretty tight! They have the rest of the summer together...

On a personal Mommy note - something seems to be ending. Something seems to be beginning. Out of my control, hard to describe. I'm sure the seasoned Moms reading will "get it".

Happy Graduation Miss.Nora

Happy Nursery School Graduation, Nora.

Nora graduated from Nursery School. Another one of those moments that doesn't seem possible. I guess I can give myself a little credit based on the fact that she went a year early, technically. With her birthday in October and the cut-off date of September 1, Nora should have been in the class starting this coming fall 09. She was really ready though. I only a few regrets. I think that she would have been very bored in toddler school so I was glad to see her be challenged and learn tons. However, it was tough at the beginning of the year with a very young class (5 early starters including Nora). There was a big learning curve for this class: sitting, listening, routine, etc (regret #1). I fear that those challenges limited her learning and actually gave us some of the discipline hurdles to overcome at home. Then again, she is three and whoever said the terrible two's are the worst phase somehow lost their two year old before they turned three! I'm sure that I will line out that sentence in the future and replace it was 13 or 16 year old or some higher number.

Frustration would be other biggest regret for Nora. I think that when she struggled with some of the fine-motor skill tasks such as writing and detail coloring, she was very frustrated. She actually knows what she wants to do and can see the examples and older kids do it but then she can't reproduce it. I know that this is part of learning. It is what forces us to practice and stretch our abilities but for her age she is right on. Compare her to a typical age nursery schooler, near 9-12 months older, and she isn't there. Things improved greatly by the end of the year and really, she is ahead in many areas. She is counting to 30 or more, she knows her ABC's and can read most of them. She knows all her colors and knows some Spanish words/counting. She is now tracing letters pretty successfully. She spells her name aloud along with other children's names. We are very proud of her especially for overcoming the challenges that we handed to her.

So, she was a chicken! Her class put on a play for parents and family and she clucked/baulked her heart out. She sang all of her songs and did well. It was interesting at the end because my normally not-so-shy-on-stage, girl that sings songs and bosses the other kids around to sing with her was refusing to sing the last song. She pouted and whined instead. She even refused to accept her "diploma". Weird, huh? So, she came over shortly after and took off her chicken hat and she was sweaty wet. She was hot! The show, did not go on...

She was good to go after a good Daddy hug, a cookie or two and a drink. We love you Nora!

Memorial Day Picnic

Happy Memorial Day!

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The Williams Klan* got together over Memorial Day weekend for a picnic. Great-Grandpa Wms (my grandpa), Gammie and Papa (at their house), the King families including little Maverick and the Sobnosky five. We had a wonderful visit. It was beautiful day, nice a sunny, warm and perfect.


The Vitale kids had a blast having family, cousins and kids to play with. Gavin played a lot with Scott, Mark and Robert. Daniel was helping Gavin and Nora dunk! It was hilarious. He soon decided lifting 40 or 50 lb kids is not so easy. Let alone repeatable.


Nora gave it her all keeping up with the big boys but also enjoyed visiting with Tessa and the rest of the family.

Dylan and Maverick (1 year old early June) enjoyed checking out each others toys...They both enjoyed the midget Adirondack chairs. I love this picture. Maverick is so chill and Dylan was showing off his "Yah!" and clap.


*I always try to write from the kids perspective and there relationships.

Three Little Monkeys

I am loving that they are all playing together these days. Dylan went along for the ride with Nora driving - brave soul!

Nora and the Beast

A milestone maybe? A moment? A memory? I say all three and maybe even an opportunity. I want my kids to experience a lot of things, different things. I want them to see different ways of life. Yesterday was one of those moments to share something new with Nora. Gammie and I took her to see Beauty and the Beast. This was Nora's first trip to the theater, first Broadway, first girls-day-out-to the city, another glimpse at the big world around her. I wanted to show her something bigger.
We had an extraordinary day. We went to Lidia's for brunch. We got all dressed up, girlie. She was a beautiful little girl, dancing, skipping, feeling pretty in her dress. She was a sweet little girl, using manners when she remembered, telling us her observations along the way, using her three-year old vocabulary. She told Gammie at brunch about her drink and food: "the water is fabulous", the chocolate chip scone was "delicious" and that her gourmet grilled cheese was "ginormous". Well, the last one is a Mommy word (giant-enormous=ginormous) but still. It was.

She asked LOTS of questions about the city, driving around, the parking garage, when we would see Belle, would we be late? She was patient. She listened. She applauded during the show with the audience, she learned what "intermission" was and why it is important [it is for potty time]. She learned how to wear a wrist corsage [late in the day]. She complemented a little girl behind us in a costume Belle gown, she told her, "Your dress is pretty and I like your shoes." [Proud Mommy moment - she was genuine, sincere and not at all jealous]. She appreciated the humor of some of the jokes and expressed fear and even dislike of the scary parts [some of the beast's early role is scary, said that she liked it when he was a nice guy and she very much disliked the wolves].

I was proud of her, in awe of her wonderment and ability to drink it all in. I was also intrigued to see her wiggle in her chair at brunch. There were many pats under the table on her leg or bum to reminder her to sit. It was a joy to see her watch herself in the mirror beside her chair that was a divider between our table and the next. Then she really was three. I laughed a little to see her sit in her theater seat and struggle to keep the seat down and not fold her up in the chair. Her 40 or so lbs wasn't enough when she would sit all the way back. I cried when she stood up to see "Be our Guest". Her eyes were wide, her mouth was open, she pointed a few times, her feet danced along with the silverware, plates and cups and objects. She smiled wide as the song culminated. She jumped a little while she clapped. I loved that she was sleepy when it all began. Normally the beginning of nap time. No complaining, no whining [except a little when the Byham Theater director was talking to us about next year's theater series - "Uh, when will Belle start?", she asked], just quiet watching. Tough to be excited when you're tired. She got a second wind with intermission and she hasn't slowed down since. I was sad to see her sad to not be able to speak to Belle. I was amused to see and hear her talk about Gaston and that he was silly, funny and not the one that Belle loved. So many things happened for Nora in the 6 short hours away from home and our normal routine. I was just glad to be there to see it all unfold.

She didn't make it out of downtown before falling asleep in the car on the way home. But not before asking me as I buckled her in her car seat, "Mommy, can we watch Belle movie when we get home?".

May Pics

Click Here ->May Pictures

Clutch

Dylan has gotten to the point that he wants to be outside ALL the time. He loves it. Freedom I suppose. Options maybe? Maybe he just loves it. So, he is also getting really good and climbing up and down stairs. We come down on his belly, backwards. It helps him resist the Superman option. [...which he exercised solo late last week...he decided to try and climb the steps by himself but either slipped or changed his mind. As I mentioned, he is just learning so flying solo resulted in a big goose egg on his forehead.]

So, we climb down the basement steps from the kitchen in the morning which he willingly gets down, turns around, crawls backward and makes his way down. We get down to the basement and he immediately searches out his shoes. He sits down and waits patiently for his shoes. Minimal wiggling...not kidding. Yup, not even 15 months...

So, we grab a coat if necessary, zip up and then Dylan tries to push open the basement door. Pull buddy. With the door open...he trucks out into the driveway and looks to get into the car. This is a daycare day and he sees his siblings climbing in too. He happily gets his seat belt on jabbering the whole time.

So, we drive to school, less than 3 miles, only a few minutes. He listens to Gavin and Nora in the back. Questions, answers, singing, who knows. Almost always, Dylan is pretty quiet. Looking around, out the window, smiling back at Mommy when I look over my shoulder at the red light. We arrive. Gavin and Nora get out first. They go around and open Dylan's door. He laughs like this is a version of peek-a-boo. He wiggles trying to get out of his seat belt, nearly too early and actually delaying the unbuckle process.

I carry him to the door. He sit on his spot on my hip [The spot was developed by Gavin and perfected by Nora - left side, up high and sore right butt.], arm wrapped over my shoulder and hand holding on in the back. His legs gently grip for balance as I swing him and tip him over grabbing bags and herding the big kids into school out of the parking lot (someone once said difficult situations can be like herding cats...I think that should be my official title; Cat Herder).

Gavin flies up the stairs and Nora has her one pace in life. Dylan is looking for Gavin and watching other kids, parents coming and going. We make the trip up the stairs to daycare [about 30 steps with a nearly 30 lb kid that can't walk up the steps yet - the tread height is about the same as his inseam]. We make our way upstairs. [Did I mention at the beginning that I am intentionally not recounting the Gavin and Nora drama of this entire process?] Gavin and Nora scatter to their cubbies to hang jackets and are off running to the "pink room" for school. So, this is when I notice a tighter grip with his hand wrapped around the back of my arm. I take a few more steps away from the "pink room", waving to Nora and Gavin - they don't really notice. Dylan waved once this week.

As I turn for Dylan's room behind me, little legs clutch my waist and fingers grasps my shirt and arm. A second hand appears on the collar of my shirt in the front, holding on. As I open the door to the Toddler Room, I say good morning to the occupants, teachers and children lined up in highchairs. At this point there is a tight grip all around and when Ms. Michelle says, "Good morning Dylan", its over. Dylan buries his head in my neck and every ounce of him is clutching on to me. I squeeze him for a hug in return, kiss him behind the ear because I can't find his face, tell him I love him and begin to peel him off of me. [The stories or memories actually are similar for Gavin and Nora, especially at this age and during this transition to Toddler School but my reactions were very different.] I quickly peel the rest of Dylan off of me and hand him to Ms. Michelle. His crying escalates to screaming instantly. He is red faced with tears streaming as I kiss his cheek and tell him that I will see him later..."Have a good day." I turn and walk quickly out the room. A short, piercing scream is followed by a gasp of breath. I only hear silence as I seat the door in the door jam and then I hear the sobbing begin after he starts to breath again. I force myself to walk away and ensure being nowhere near the window. My soul aches, my heart is broken, a tear slides down my cheek. I reach the door to the stairwell and can barely will myself to push the door open. Some days this is where I pause, other days I make it to the outer door until I physically pause. Most days I can reach the car and put on my seat belt and sit there for a minute before moving to the next phase of my day. I suppose that all of this is better than standing in the stairwell balling or crying hard all the way to work.

They say that he "recovers quickly". They say he " is doing very well" in his new room. They say he likes his new (some old) friends and is getting use to his new teachers (2 of 4). That is all I have, words of trusted teachers. Teachers we know and believe. I also know he won't do this forever. I know he will be like Gav and Nora and stop even saying goodbye. In the meantime, we are doing the clutch!

Happy Mother's Day

So sad that I am writing this in July, but it is a lovely memory to be remembered.

Gammie and Papa were visiting Mother's Day weekend. We made plans to go out to dinner, dressed up a little. [Hard to forget the lack or at least limited air conditioning and being very hot jugging dinner and kid requests.] We had a lovely dinner and after, Nora and Gammie were telling secrets to "each u'der. They were talking softly and giggling pretty quietly. They were adorable. I knew the picture would shadowed with the bright window behind them but I had to take it before I distracted/disturbed them by getting up.

Sweet girls...

Picky Eater - Progress?

Gavin is a very picky eater. He has his menu. I know that is my fault because I indulge his wants and put up with his distastes. As he has gotten older he can hold out too, meals at a time boycotting what is in front of him. To his credit, has a range of things that he does eat, hitting the food groups although avoiding vegetables all together. I now hide applesauce, bananas, squash, sweet potatoes, etc in pancakes and other things that we eat. Good for all of us to have the hidden fruit and veggie content. He willfully eats strawberries, bananas and apples. Dairy - no milk - but yogurt three times a day. I worry he will burn out but no sign of that. Meat/protein - chicken (majority of intake), pepperoni (is that really protein?) and ground beef in meals.

So, we seem to be taking a few positive steps lately trying to add some things to his menu. I had made some progress before tonsils/adenoid surgery and was hoping we would get back to it. So, last night, taking advantage of Gavin's ferocious appetite as of late (post-op), I baked a frozen lasagna that I had made. He has boycotted pasta of all sorts awhile ago. He ate a lot of pasta until he was ~3 years old and for some reason gave it up. So, I have repeatedly tried to reintroduce pasta (in various forms) over the past two years. He has eaten spaghetti a few times lately but with much protest. So, I figured we would try lasagna. I convinced him to try it because it has the same ingredients as pizza (top pick) and then after a couple bites he liken it to "pizza bites" [a.k.a. pizza rolls]. At first his comment was, "Mom, it doesn't taste good, but I'm going to eat it because I am hungry." A few bites later, "Ya know, I do like it and I think I'll eat it all." He did pretty well until on the last piece in his bowl he found a browned edge piece and declared that he was "not eating that!"

Either way, a good dinner table evening for Gavin. I'll skip the Nora-that-did-not-nap-grumpy-decline-to-eat story as well Dylan's-continued-desire-to through food-on the floor-for entertainment story [I love daycare...].

Take me out to the ballgame...

Gavin first baseball game! We had a really nice time going to Gav's game today. It was his team's third game but he had to miss so far as he recovered from surgery. It went well [as well as 5-7 yr. olds can do on a ball diamond]. What really matters is that he had fun.

Gavin had spectators as you might imagine. Nora was a grump for the majority of the time we were there. She wanted Daddy [base coaching]. She wanted Gavin, she wanted to play baseball [not yet sweetie]. She wanted to be a cheerleader [but I don't have a skirt]. Never ending. It all turned around when she saw Gavin on third base through the fence and became a big fan of "#2". She decided to cheer him on.

Dylan was excited to point out Gavin or Daddy from time to time and enjoy his lunch in the stroller {Thank goodness}.