Faffles

Dressed in Easter Best

Zaeda is talking a lot! She is stringing more words together and it's fun to listen to what she comes up with. Here are a few:

"I like faffles (waffles)."

"Mommy's hot foffee (coffee)."

She knows most of the parts of her body. She can identify various animals and mimic the sounds that they make.

It's hard not to compare your children but I love it when Zaeda surprises me by doing something Oliver never did. It reminds me that she is her own person and will do different things than Oliver or the same things as Oliver but in her own time.

Zaeda skips when she is happy. Not your typical skip -- more of a little hop over and over again across the floor. She dances when she is happy or being silly. When she told me she liked "faffles" she did a little shimmy from side to side. She sometimes walks just on her tippy toes. She is more interested in what she wears than Oliver was/is. It isn't to a point where she is difficult but occasionally she seems to have an opinion on what coat (the big white furry one) or shoes (gold lamae) that she wants to wear. Sometimes we get her dressed and turn around to find that she has taken everything off.

We've also started to reach a tantrum phase. Sometimes it's quick and in some instances it seems to last forever. She's also been fighting another diaper rash so that probably plays a part. But one thing did seem to snap her out of her most recent massive tantrum-- the recently earned Tootie Cushion.

Easter

This year we did the egg hunt in Fernhill  Park and then went over to the Prices where the kids can hang out with their cousins Luke and Cami.

Egg hunting with Luke and Cami

This isn't an egg....

Cami shows them how to open eggs and organize the candy

Sweet siblings

Oliver's Dragon drawing

Oliver practicing his numbers with the calculator

Tired and giggly after wrestling. Bedtime!

For some reason Oliver loves to wiggle his butt at people and smack it. He managed a toot just as the shutter went  off on this picture

For most of you reading, this item is commonly referred to as a Whoopee Cushion. In our house, passing gas is referred to as "tooting" hence the Tootie Cushion. Before we get into all the great fun we're having with the Tootie Cushion, it's important to explain why Keith and I (mostly Keith) would choose to purchase such a thing for our children.

The Tootie Cushion was purchased as a reward to Oliver for pooping on the toilet. We've been struggling with this piece of toilet training for some time. We tried everything except punishment and we knew there wasn't any physical hang up. As mentioned in an earlier post, Oliver is fascinated with passing gas. What better 'carrot' to offer in exchange for successfully pooping on the toilet. At first he wasn't interested. This went on for weeks. He didn't even want us talking about it. The other night Keith came upon Oliver on his little toilet-- he had pooped on the toilet! Once we confirmed the obvious, the first words out of Oliver's mouth were, "I want the Tootie Cushion". Oliver loves this thing. Fast forward maybe 30 minutes and Zaeda is in the throes of her tantrum. What pulls her out of it? You guessed it-- the Tootie Cushion.

The Tootie Cushion is non-stop fun for the kids. Fortunately, Keith purchased the Whoopee Cushion that inflates itself so we are not having to constantly blow one up. The funniest part for us is watching the kids react. Zaeda has taken to copying her brother's response which is sitting on the cushion and then falling backwards laughing.

Meanwhile, Oliver in now regular and confident about getting himself up on the pot.

House for Sale

Earlier this year we decided to finally get serious about selling the home we bought ten years ago, into which we’ve put so much time and effort fixing it up. Now it’s early May and we’re weeks away from listing it. The evenings and weekends have been entirely occupied with getting the house ready for month. We’ve packed up many of our belongings, repainted, installed new hardwood floors, sealed our basement walls, and attended to a hundred little odds and ends we’d lived with, but must address before selling.

We’re just starting to look for a new home that better suites our little family. We haven’t found a new home yet, or even settled on a new neighborhood. We’ll still be in Portland. We want many things in a new home, and it’s a tough decision. We must weigh schools against the size of dining rooms and the layout of kitchens. Like so many major life changes, it’s a bit stressful, but also fun.