Classic Cordelia

Yesterday was Thanksgiving. We had a great, chaotic day. I ran my very first Turkey Trot in the morning with Sarah, and then we made dinner for Mary Beth, Monika and Sean, and Christiane, Ulf, Monika, Max, and Philip. I went into it knowing I would work like crazy to produce a meal that 50 percent of the guests, all under 7, wouldn't eat. That was pretty much right. Cordelia had something of a rough morning, and a minute into complaining about said meal, she seemed to catch herself…then she came up to me and said sweetly — and sincerely — "Mom? Thank you so much for working really hard to make this amazing dinner, even though I hate all of it and I'm not going to eat any of it! Thank you!" I couldn't not laugh. It was priceless.

Then, just before bed, she crawled onto my lap at the table, snuggled up and said, "Mom? I love you even though I'm mad at you." Surprised, I asked, "You're mad at me? Why are you mad at me?" She sighed and said, "NO, I love you even THOUGH I'm mad at you!" Still confused. Then it dawned on me: "Do you mean even WHEN you're mad at me?" She said, "YES! That's what I said. I love you even though I'm mad at you."

And thus explains our whole relationship. : )

Recently, in the World of Cody...

From the Cox Farms Fall Festival ...

Publication Day! (Yes, he is wearing his knight costume.)

School campout!

His little friend Emily (who has a crush on him).

 Hanging out in Occoquan...

The Maersk container ship is finally built!

 Cody's new desk! Which is actually Granny's old (very old) desk … it's stuffed full of pens (the latest obsession) and he is loving his very own work space.

 Zonked out with HP...

And my personal favorite: A little pep talk for Mom.

Ladies and Gentlemen: Cody Bluth

Epic. 

Hushabye Emma

Because she's just funny.

It's Potty Time!

So last night, Emma was looking a little uncomfortable and suddenly turned to me and said, "I need to poop! I AM POOPING!" I congratulated her. She then insisted, "I NEED TO POOP ON THE POTTY!" JVL and I rolled our eyes and he obliged by pulling out the  little toilet, which she just loved. Just like the kids in The Cat in the Hat, all she could do was just sit sit sit sit. (And I did not like it — not one little bit.) Okay, it was fine. We looked at magazines. She sat down and reached for reading material, like a pro! And lo and behold, she … well, this is a family blog. I won't go there. But she took care of business, and got M&Ms. The trap is sprung.

Today when we got home from work/school/sitter, she wanted to pick up where we left off. We spent a good 20 minutes just hanging out, me on the uncomfortable hardwood floor, her confiding, "I am sitting on the potty! I'm having a little bit of potty time! Like a big girl! Daddy gave me this potty. It belongs to ME! I am peeing on the potty!" (She wasn't.)

Nothing happened. As it won't, 90 percent of the time, from now on (oh why did she have to express interest in this in the winter?!). But we did get some quality reading of Ranger Rick Jr. in. Behold, the cuteness. ("That's a BLUEWHALE! (Byoo-vayle!) That's A BEAVER! That's NOT AN OWL! I am ZOOMING PERCY! Should I give him a KISS? WAIT I WANT TO SEE THE BUNNY AGAIN! WAIT WAIT!")

Pumpkin Smash 2014

Cody, Cordelia, and I braved the wind and went to Fairfax Disney yesterday for Cox Farms' annual Pumpkin Smash. It was pretty much as advertised:

And:

Not pictured: The pumpkin catapult. (Actually a trebuchet, but Cody won't appreciate that difference until he starts playing Dungeons & Dragons.)

Also not pictured: Cody went to a birthday party for one of his school friends which was Minecraft-themed. There was a big room set up with a dozen computers so the kids could all play Minecraft together. Cody was one of only two people who had no idea--at all--what was going on.

The party place had high-school aged techs there to help the kids out, and I watched as Cody pretty much monopolized this one kid asking question after question in an attempt to figure out what was going on. It went something like this:

Tech Kid: So you use the mouse . . .  

Cody: [blank stare] 

Tech Kid: You know, the cursor, on the screen . . . 

Cody: Uhhh . . . 

Tech Kid: And then you hit the Escape key. 

Cody: What's that?

Tech Kid: [Looks up at me, begging for help]  

JVL: We're Amish.

Fall in Love with Emma Elisabeth

Dear Emma, 

I'm posting this not because we have been particularly in love with you over these past few weeks, but because hope must always have the last word. You've been giving us a run for our money, dear. You're  barely 22 months, but you talk like you're 12, and act like you're…well, two. Two is terrible, they say. You've been whining. Throwing tantrums. Repeating phrases incessantly. Not sleeping well. Generally being your evil twin. Taking your shoes and socks off every.damn.time we get in the car, like Richie Tenenbaum on a really bad day. 

You're killing us, kid. The other two are supposed to be the biggest handfuls, but I could always count on my "joy" to give me a break. That plan seems to be on hiatus…and I want you to know that's okay. We love you anyway. We find joy in you. We love that we can have somewhat complex conversations with you, because your speech is ridiculously clear, your vocabulary is vast, and you know exactly what's going on, what you want, and what you find unacceptable. And are not afraid to express it. That's a gift (mostly). We would like you to stop whining, true, and to grow out of the terrible twos before you even TURN two. But we love you, just as you are.  And you are so damn cute. 

Here you are, shopping with me in the Giant. Granted, this happened after you fussed so much I had to take you out of the seat and let you walk. But then, this: 

Here's another shopping trip—you delightedly (and creatively) made a baby seat for Baby Go Go out of the cart cupholder. Well done.

"I want to go on the slide! I will show you how I climb up and slide down!"

Here, "I am riding on my tooter!"

Here you are, eating soup with your hands.

The week before last, you and I popped in at school to accompany Cordelia's class to the pumpkin patch. Your first field trip! You took to it like a pro.

 (You wanted All The Pumpkins, Please.)

 Here you are, listening the pumpkin songs and looking for all the world like you are ready for preschool.

 And here you are, back in the classroom, surveying your environment...

 …and making yourself right at home.

 Here you are, trying to fit into your little bookshelf.

 And here you are in Mrs. Patoka's classroom, having your daily visit with the fish. ("I want to go see the fishes! The blue fishie is sleeping! He is so sweet! I need to kiss him!")

Speaking of kissing, you are really into "dimosaurs." Here's what you told me: "This is my dimosaur! He is so sweet! I love him!" "What is his name?" I asked. Your immediate reply, "His name is Emma! I am kissing him!"

And here you are at bedtime—Mommy's favorite time of day—doing my new favorite thing that you do: you clasp your tiny hands together in prayer and say, "Shall we say Our Father Hail Mary and Angel of God." It's a declaration, not a question. And then we do. And then you drift off to sleep.

Sweet Emma…even though you have been breaking our spirits … we love you. All the time. All the way to the moon. And back. 

Always with love, 

Mommy and Daddy