Cheesecake

I made this "cheesecake" today. It's from home made goat milk ricotta and has zucchini in it. A nice savory cheesecake to go with dinner. It was awesome!

Make Up Ap

When good aps go bad.

Arya saw my hair gel today and asked me if it was "died jellyfish".

I made Monkey Butter today. It's basically coconut, banana, pineapple and sugar. I canned it too. I've never canned before. I knew I'd done it right when I heard that familiar pop of cans sealing. I totally forgot about that until I heard each one popping. My mom used to can when I was a child, so I know the sound well.

I called the girls teacher and principal this morning and left messages. Five hours later I drove up to the school to see if I could talk to someone. There was a woman in the office who helped me with registration in February. She is the one who wrote down my request to have the girls in separate rooms and told me it would be possible as long as there were two A.M. classes. She was less than happy to help me today. She made sure I was aware that there aren't always two morning classes, so they can't always separate twins. I'm not sure why she told me this since there are two classes, which means her information doesn't mean anything to us and our situation. I explained that the girls look alike and how no one knows who is who, and a bunch of my other reasoning. She reluctantly switched them. I was very nice and made sure that by switching one into the other class, she didn't have to displace another child. She didn't. I asked if there was any paperwork she or I had to fill out. There wasn't. I'm not sure what the big deal was. She asked what their "proficiency level" is and then told me it doesn't matter since they're the same age and are probably at the same level. I'm not sure why she would ask that. It's not like they've tested any of the kids going into 4K and have any clue what any know. So they can't have the kids arranged in classrooms based on ability. And both Arya and Eiley know just about everything they'll be taught this year. They know their days of the week, letters, months, numbers to 20, what letter words start with, how to write their first and last name etc. Of course repetition is great, so it won't hurt to go over this again. They will be learning some sight words and hopefully be able to tell you if today is Saturday that tomorrow is Sunday. Right now they know the order of the days, but can't always tell you what is next if you pick out a day at random and they aren't reciting them in order.

Indukala Returns

I painted all the kids' toenails today, and Arya and Eiley's fingernails. I mentioned that all three kids have toenails like their daddy. Arya asked "If we named Zia Indukala, would she still have toenails like daddy?" And there is that awful name again. LOL.

Zia ate lunch faster than the rest of us today. She was begging to get out of her high chair, so I cleaned her up and put her down on the floor. A few minutes later, I see her head pop up at the table. She'd climbed onto one of the chairs, for the first time. She then helped herself to markers and Eiley's salami sandwich. I had to fish a giant blob of salami out of her mouth. She doesn't have molars yet, and there is now way she was going to chew that.

I made this "dress" out of the giant shirt Eiley got from the library. I still need to add a bow to the back. I think it looks more like a nightgown than a bow, but I can't convince her to wear it at night and not as a dress. She's so proud of the shirt.

The girls just crack me up. I was cleaning up tonight and found these.

I am a bit frustrated tonight. I registered the twins for school back in February. I requested that they be in separate classrooms. Tonight, we went to school orientation to find out who their teachers are, drop off school supplies etc. We found out that they are in the same classroom. I did not make my decision lightly to separate them. Academically, I think they could be in the same class and do fine. I know that there would be some disruptions as they battled things out. They would have periodic disputes in class this past year. For individual development, I really feel strongly about having them in different rooms. I think about how I would feel if I were four years old and the majority of people never called me by my name. If I was knows as "that one" "hey girl" "which one are you" etc. By being in their own classrooms, they will have a teacher who always knows who is who. A teacher who can't group them into one entity in their own mind. A teacher who will always know who is doing what. They will also have friends of their own. Friends in a classroom who can always call them by their own name. Who won't have to ask which one they are. And, the girls are excited about having separate rooms. We've been talking about it since February. I have so torn as to what to do because I do love the teacher. If I had been thinking, I would have gone and introduced myself to the other teacher. By the time we met their teacher, Zia was done and I was a sweaty mess. The room was way too warm and my shirt was soaked with sweat. I wasn't thinking and we just left. I should have also talked to the principal to see what we could do.

Ghetto Gate Yeller

Zia cracks me up. We were at the kid museum today. She was walking around as if she always walks. She was moving things in the grocery section. I took a little video of her. She had a melon and was doing her chimp crawl with it. She then threw the melon and yelled. Not sure if it was in triumph or what. I showed it to a couple friends who think she's yelling ball, but she just yells all day long. I really don't think she's saying ball.

She loves to stand at the ghetto gate when I'm upstairs. She just stands there, licks the gate, and yells "Mom" as loud as she can.

Not So Safe

Possibly not the safest activity. I was cleaning up lunch and saw them go through the room like this. Eiley was pushing and Zia was having a ball.

We have three very good looking kids. Zia looks so old to me here. She climbed onto the seat herself.

Zia was starving tonight, so I fed her just before 5:00. She was falling asleep and could not finish dinner. I took her out, cleaned her up, changed her diaper, and put pajamas on without her waking. Of course she took a little power nap and was awake within 10 minutes of falling asleep in the chair. The rest of us ate dinner after Cork got home and we had cookies for dessert. Zia was more than happy to join us.

Camping Take 3

I woke to this today. Not a bad way to wake up. I think there were only two groups camping last night. It was so quiet and peaceful.

Since it's the last day camping for the season, I decided a roasted peep would be a good ending to breakfast.

Zia is so worn out. She fell asleep holding this box.

Camping Take 2

We had a much better day today. The kids all woke up in a good mood. We had breakfast, went for a hike, had lunch, and then took the kids to an indoor water park for the afternoon. While there, Zia pooped. She was in a clear inner tube, with a bottom in the middle. There was also some water in there with her. The water quickly turned brown and we were as far away from the bathroom as possible. Cork carried the innertube, with Zia in it, to the bathroom. I followed with the twins and we got the tube, Zia, and the swim diaper cleaned up. Considering we've been taking the kids swimming for years and this is our first swim diaper poop, I can't complain. And, it was pretty funny.

The twins were in the tent tonight alone. They both had flashlights and were supposed to be changing into jammies. Instead, Cork and I could see but.t shadow puppets on the tent wall. How do they think of these things? We've never done shadow puppets with them.

Zia loves camping. She was a riot to watch in the tent. She was all over the thing, from room to room, checking everything out. She was the last kid asleep both nights because she just wanted to play.

Camping Take 1

We took the kids camping today. We were supposed to go yesterday, but Cork had to be somewhere for work, so we left a day late. Today was so rocky that we weren't sure if we would stay a second night. The twins did not want to listen to anything we told them and Zia wanted down to eat rocks. It was not the easiest camping day we've ever had. Or the most enjoyable. Trying to get the three over tired kids down to sleep for the night was challenging as well. We did get to go to a couple parks and had some fun this afternoon away from the tent.

She Wants Out

Zia loves to be outside. She loves it so much that she'll sit at the door and scream until we go out. I couldn't even get her changed today before she was yelling to be let outside.

Arya really didn't want to go to bed tonight. She wasn't tired at all. And she's definitely not drooling on the carpet.

Nose Polish

Cork's gone. This is what my bed looked like at 6:00 am this morning. Again, nothing gets in the way of Z eating. She thinks it's hilarious when the other two are all over her.

Remember this past weekend's birthday party? The girls got their nails painted. Today, Eiley brought me this and was a bit freaked out that she'd found it in her nose. So funny. I told her that if she stopped picking her nose, her nailpolish would not fall off in her nose.

Hair in Poppins

Today was the last day of the summer reading program at our library. They had a little program and drew names for prizes. There weren't too many kids there, so every kid got something. Arya won a bag with a few highlighters, some candy, a pencil, and a rubber ball. Eiley won a kid size L t-shirt that won't fit for years, but it's pink so she was super excited about it. For showing up, each kid also got a certificate for a personal pan pizza and for a 5" sub. Not bad for an afternoon at the library. A fellow mom said that her kids were never motivated by the prizes to do the reading program. At this age, getting a free pizza is huge, especially when we rarely go out to eat. Arya and Eiley were super excited. The motivation, in my opinion, comes from home. They do look at books themselves now and tell the story outloud, but they can't read yet. It's our responsibility as their parents to read to them.

While at the library, the girls saw a little bit of Harry Potter. When we got home we talked about it because they were a little scared. I told them the name and how they may like it when they would get older. Arya turned to Eiley and said "It's Hair in Poppins. Must be he knows Mary Poppins."

Our garden has been awesome this year, especially when we got one tomato last year. This is just one days worth of tomatoes. We have eaten so many, given some away, and still have about 2 gallons of crushed tomatoes in the freezer.

When she wants to eat, nothing is going to stand in her way.

Arya drew this on her own. I asked what it was and honestly can't remember what she said. I think maybe it is an elephant. No matter, it's just cute.

Enough Air in the House

We went to the wading pool for maybe the last time this summer. The pools close in 5 days and we'll be camping for some of that. I'm sad that the two older kids will be in school, but I think they are ready to go back.

Arya's new word is "Actualutely!" She's so funny to listen to right now. She's always using big words, even if they aren't real words.

We were eating dinner tonight and Eiley was getting cold. She didn't want the sliding door open anymore. She shut it and said "I'm done. There's enough air in the house."

Hide and seek.

We Have A Walker

We had a really good day today. No one was overly cranky. We had a play date here in the morning, Zia napped after, and the other two helped me prep dinner. They made beer bread and meat loaf. I haven't made beer bread since they were arguing over the last beer in the bottle. I opened a beer on Saturday that was really not my style. I decided beer bread was a good way to use it.

Arya is still making up words. This morning she said "actualutely". Absolutely? Actually? Your guess is as good as mine.

I have been saying that once Zia decides to walk, she's just going to take off. Tonight she and I were at our mommy and me group. She wanted to go visit someone and was holding a bag of kleenex while sitting on my lap. She just stood up off my lap and started walking. Goofy girl. She took about 10 steps and then sat down. The whole time we were there she kept walking. A few times she got going too fast while trying to run and would fall forward. If she keeps this up, she'll be running after the twins in no time.

Listening to kids talk is like a game of telephone. Arya was talking to a neighbor kid today. She said "Bow on a flower head" while joking around. The girl laughed and said "Ball on a shower head". They were both laughing, both thinking they were saying the same thing.

A Friend's Party

I worked in the nursery at church today and all three kids played in there with me. There was only one other kid with us, so basically instead of going to a service we had about 75 minutes of play time with new toys. Everyone had a blast. Eiley spelled this and asked what it spells. I told her Guy-fot-cs. She kept saying "gu.y fu.c.ks". Probably not appropriate for church, but I was laughing.

After church, Arya and Eiley had a birthday party to go to. It was at a local kid salon. They each got their hair done, nails painted, smelly stuff sprayed on them, blasted with glitter, had a little meal and cake, and got to sing karaoke. Cork and I ran errands with Zia during the party. When we picked them up, the mom showed me a video of Arya singing karaoke. She was really into it. I asked the girls this morning if they wanted to be in the kids choir at our church. They both said that they did and this reinforced in my mind that it's something they would enjoy. While I don't want to make the weekly commitment to be at church for another hour, I really do think it's something they will enjoy. I was in the choir at church at their age and have good memories from it. I don't want to deny them of that just because I don't want to be there. We only have one car seat for each kid, so we all have to go together. We don't have the option to have one parent drive the twins and the other follow an hour later with Zia.

Noooo

I feel like the blog has had a lot about Arya lately, but she's been such a hoot. She is borrowing this horse from a neighbor kid. I found it sitting like this, under a chair, "reading" a Dora book about horse racing. She said that the horse was learning how to race.

Zia has learned to shake her head "No" and knows how to use it when joking around. She will sign milk and then shake her head "no" and crack up. It is nice though because she can sign to me if she wants more of something and can shake her head if she doesn't. You would think that would cut down on the amount of screaming around here, but she just likes to scream.

My mom, Nana, made these awesome coats for the girls for their birthday.

Beer Garden

I wanted to take the kids out to lunch before they headed back to school. I set up a lunch and park playdate with a few of their friends for today. We met the friends at a local burger place. Of course the girls could only eat about half of their burgers, but could finish a giant scoop of ice cream. Normally I wouldn't get them each an ice cream if they couldn't finish lunch, but this was a special treat, so I gave in and even go them sprinkles on their ice cream. Their Bepa always spoils them and gets a topping for them when he takes them there, so they sort of expected it. I'm a softy right now since they'll be starting half days at school.

We were driving from the restaurant to the park. The kids were sitting in the wrong car seats, so I was joking around with them about their names. I asked Arya what her first name was and she said "Arya picking her nose". She did in fact have her finger jammed way up her nose.

We went to a beer garden tonight. The kids may have had more fun than us. There was a big playground there, giant pretzels, and they all got to stay up way past bed time.

Oftenly

The older two's vocabulary have just exploded recently. They use all sorts of words I didn't know they knew, and a few I don't even know. Arya's new favorite word is "oftenly". She uses it very oftenly. Today she told me "we don't see she oftenly" when she was talking about a friend.

We had noodles and red sauce at dinner tonight. Arya told me "I don't like this spaghetti because these noodles are so rude. They don't want to be picked up."

Bear Sesame Street

We listen to Pandora radio around here all the time. The kids love a Disney station we've built. A song was playing today that they hadn't heard before. Eiley asked what it was. I said "Bear Necessities". She looked at Arya and said "Arya, it's bear Sesame Street".

Happy Birthday Duo

Our oldest two turned four today. Happy Birthday to them. They love to hear stories about when they were born, so today was full of those. The whole day was about them. I did what they wanted to do, which included shopping for new clothes for the fall. We bought a bunch of really cute things at thrift stores. They were thrilled to get to pick things out and at this age they don't care if they are used or not. We also stopped at a health food store to pick up some soap. They each got to pick out a piece of candy and got a mint, like a York, but it was honey and peppermint oil on the inside and dark unsweetened chocolate on the outside. They were really good. If York tasted like that, I would be addicted.

When Cork came home, we gave the girls the last of their presents. Besides tiny toy castle they'd picked out today, they also got clothes, backpacks, umbrellas, and the desk I painted for them. After opening the presents, Arya told us "next time, don't give us all clothes. okay!"

And since it's the 13th today, we can't forget Miss Z. She is 14 months today and full of just as much crazy as her sisters. She's barely talking now. I'm sure she's working on walking instead. I know that she could just do it if she let go. I know she'll figure it out soon.