This week we are in New York visiting nani and grandpa. Initially sunny, hot and humid, it's abruptly turned rainy and cold. The kids love it here and they adore nani and grandpa. It's so sweet how close and attached they are, especially considering our distance and how rarely we get to see them. Ethan tells me that he would love it if we could move here permanently and I think Cami would agree.
Ethan's behavior has been great for the most part and I'm not sure whether to credit our evolving parenting skills, the end of school, being here on vacation, or maturity on his part. In any case, I'll take it. He has been swimming madly and that's pretty much all he wants to do aside from helping nani re-pot orchids in the greenhouse, and playing his new found favorite game, UNO. While he understands the concept of the game, he doesn't like anyone to actually win. Instead everyone plays out their cards one by one and the game goes on and on and on until the last person has played out all of his (and I use his because I am referring to Ethan only) cards, even if that takes a very very Very long time, and even if it doesn't actually make any sense. I don't mind though, the look on his face as he drops a + 4 wild card and revels in the power of changing the game to his color of choice, is well, pretty awesome. I love how even something so silly is magical to a five year old; the way he pronounces his change, "I'm chaaanging it to yellow" and waves his invisible magic wand over the cards, I just might be willing to play with him forever.
He is gaining lots of confidence in swimming and is using a new "aide" which actually requires that he work to stay afloat. I of course, am terribly stressed by the whole process and would surgically insert floatation devices under their skin if that would keep them safe in the water forever. It's these tormented moments of my motherhood that concern me most about the psychological outcome of my children. I am trying to worry less but will be extremely relieved when they are both strong swimmers. In the meantime, it's wonderful to see Ethan trying so hard and making such great progress. And what a great role model for Cami who loves the water already!
Ethan is spontaneously reading, writing and drawing with more enthusiasm. He's been writing love notes to everybody here, and is sounding out the words and writing the letters quite well. He just needs to accept the conventions of writing and join the rest of us who write left to right, top to bottom and leave small spaces between words. Other than that he could probably take over this blog.
What can I say about Cami? She is super excited to be wearing underwear this week. She's using the toilet regularly and seems to know when ITis coming. I just hope it lasts, she's done this before and then decided that she wants to regress back to diapers again. While it isn't news for anybody that knows her, Camryn likes to eat. She LOVES to eat. She pretty much wants to eat all day and night and we are beginning to be concerned that she has some kind of worm. Of course, we are comforted by the fact that her "chubbiness" and an intestinal parasite are most probably mutually exclusive. Not only does she want to eat anytime, but she will eat pretty much anything (two of her favorites being floss and dog kibble). And she's willing to cheat, lie and steal to get it. She has grown to be quite resourceful and fearless and can often be found risking her life, climbing on anything she can find (books, blocks, pillows), to reach the out of reach place where she thinks I have put whatever it is she shouldn't be reaching, in the small hope of finding something edible. Tonight she snuck off with a package of metamucil. I found her red handed, hiding in the bathtub just in the nick of time to give her the water she needs to avoid choking on the expanding fiber! yes, our angel has become quite a handful, and if we can't see or hear her, we can be certain that a disaster is in the making. Especially in uncharted territory. She just seems to want to do anything and everything that she shouldn't. Not terribly interested in playing with the new toys from nani, instead she's thrilled to peel wall paper, use toothpaste as body lotion, dump the entire contents of my purse repeatedly, disassemble entire closet arrangements, etc, etc, ETC., basically disrupt and destroy whatever she can. Otherwise though, Cami is excruciatingly adorable. Though she occasionally dangles from spoiling us with affection to attacking us with bitter insults when she doesn't get het way (a skill learned directly from her brother), her kind and gentle nature are always shining through. Her singing, her dancing, her humor, her independence and her confidence, her devotion to ethan.... I honestly have to bite her sometimes because I just can't stand it! She's our miracle and it's almost impossible now to imagine or remember, that she was once a three pound, helpless baby girl, born almost two months prematurely.
I love you my little monkeys! You are my everythings.
Nani
Mommy I love you dear mommy
Daddy I love you because of you
I'm wearing underwear!!
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