A Little Corner of the World

Today was a big day.  Sheet-changing day, which occurs when I feel like it's been about two weeks (which means it's probably been at least three).   Lee and Clara are now in a bunk bed of sorts, with Lee on the top and Clara down below.  Lee has her bed arranged just so, with stuffed animals, Polly Pockets, jewelry, and any other number of miscellaneous odds and ends that she carries up to bed with her.  

So, it's pretty distressing when I announce I'm about to rip off the sheets.  "No, mommy, no!"  But, in the name of good hygeine, off come the sheets and everything in her bed ends up in a pile on the floor.  

I never get around to putting the sheets back on until right before bedtime, and then there's a 20 or 30 minute process of re-assembling the bed just so.  She remembers exactly where everything goes, although over the course of several days things do shift around a bit, and there are always additions, although rarely subtractions.  

It's one of those things that while it might drive me a bit crazy, I completely understand.  I remember being a kid and loving my own space, the one place where I had some control of my surroundings.  I still remember vididly the arrangement of my bedroom when I was in middle school.  In The 19th Wife the boy is one of probably 100 kids in this polygamous family, and he talks about having a single dresser drawer that is his own.  Everyone needs their own little corner of the world, I guess.  

 

A Few Clara-isms

Clara is figuring out the world. She'll often point at a random person and say "what's his name?" (even if he is a she). It's a bit awkward when you're talking with someone and have no idea what their name is even though you probably should.

But lately she's picked up from someone (no, not possibly me) variations on the expression "what's up with that?" As in "what's up with that shirt, Mommy?" if I wear a shirt she hasn't seen before. Or "What is going on with him?" if she sees someone doing something strange. Or "What is going on with that zipper?" It's pretty funny actually, because she usually asks these questions in a very indignant tone, as if she's offended that something has been allowed to happen without her prior knowledge.

Today she pointed at our emperor-penguin covered tea cozy, and said "what is that thing?"

"It's our tea cozy, Clara," I said.

" I don't like it" she stated.

Allrighty-then.

Rattle, Rattle

We lost Tiger for two whole nights.  Luckily, Clara had no trouble falling right asleep because she has been so tired (she's not napping anymore aside from an occasional catnap in the car).  But she was up frequently during the nights, and she was up very early both days.  

Tiger's rattle functioned like the bell on a cat collar, alerting us ahead of time when she was on the move, and I actually found myself missing it.  One of the two mornings, I awoke to find her standing in our room, eerily silent.  It was actually a bit freaky.  

Lee was the hero yesterday when she found him jumbled up in the blankets of the fort.  Clara was very happy to see him, and we didn't hear a peep out of her last night.  

Playing with Balls

I always feel a bit bad about the fact that my girls are clueless about balls.  They don't really know how to throw or kick or catch.  Bridges and I don't really play any sports involving balls except for tennis (and we did just buy two tiny rackets for them).   We own a lot of balls, but they tend to sit around the garden room.  

Lee's actually never shown much interest in playing with balls and is decidedly uninterested in soccer, but Clara is starting to really enjoy them.  So they've been coming out of the garden room a bit more, and I'm trying to play some catch with her.  

Recently, though, I noticed the two of them lining up four of the balls we have on the driveway by decreasing size.  

"This," Lee said, "is the daddy ball."  

"And here's the mommy ball."

"And here are the two kids."

Ah, now that's how my girls play with balls.  

The Rings

These are the rings my brother-in-law Alan put up for his boys that inspired us to create the monkey bars in our basement.  They are A LOT harder than they look.  To give you some idea, here is Bridges' first attempt (and mind you, Bridges is very coordinated and strong). 

Now watch him do it for real after a bit of practice.  Then the pros come on.