Oskar: Mom, babies don't know how to control their bladder so that's why they wear diapers.
Kardynn, protesting: I know how to go up the ladder!
Friday, August 20
Tuesday, August 17
August 16
This past weekend my Mom was in town (on her way from Cairo to her home in Florida). We enjoyed her visit so much. It was a little crazy though. On the day she arrived, my brother had an unpleasant medical procedure - which resulted with his being diagnosed with interstitial cystitis. But he was very uncomfortable and wasn't supposed to be alone for 24 hours so he hung out at my place. Plus Mom was fighting jet lag AND struggling with allergies. In the meantime, my father-in-law came up from North Carolina so we also visited with him and my sister-in-law and my nephew.
What a crazy weekend!
Yesterday we drove my Mom to Reagan National Airport to catch her flight to Florida. We dropped her off around 8:40 am and then I wanted to kill some time before getting back on 66, because the traffic going back towards home had looked nasty.
First we pulled in to Gravelly Point and watched planes landing and taking off. The kids loved it...well...Kiersten was not 100% sold. You'll notice she would plug her ears as the planes went over us. It *was* quite loud.
Next we pulled off to explore Roosevelt Island. We walked to the memorial and then wandered around on the trails.
While walking around I realized I was WAY overdressed. It had been cool the last couple of days so I'd been wearing jeans. We left the house early enough that I didn't realize the cold snap had ended. I was still wearing jeans. By 9:30 am I was dying.
I also realized that I have a completely irrational fear related to the kids. When we were walking on the bridge between the island and the parking lot, if Kardynn would get too close to the side, I would seriously start almost hyper ventilating. I worried that she'd slip through the cracks...or best case scenario, simply lose a shoe. I kept trying to rationalize it away but if she started to get close, I would literally get dizzy. I had to go grab her away from the side and encourage her back towards the middle of the bridge. I was not quite as loopy about the older kids (the older they are the less it seemed to bother me - as you can see from the above picture of Oskar). But yeah, if Kardynn got too close to the edge, I would get woozy.
But back to the day's adventures, I wanted to run by Tysons Corner and take care of a few errands. I had a pair of Hanna Anderrson PJs that had had a seam come out. HA was awesome and they gave me a full credit for those PJs two years later. (Unfortunately I got a really good deal when I bought them. *hmph*)
Then I went by Pottery Barn Kids with a towel that I bought around the same time. The one seam has completely ripped out and it's all fraying along that side. The lady said, "normal wear and tear". Uh...then never mind buying towels from PBK in the future because the only other towel that has ever done this to me was a cheap-o towel that I bought at WalMart and that one was fine for like ten years before it happened. What a bummer because usually I think Pottery Barn has good customer service. I'm not sure what I thought they should do but if they think it's normal for a towel's side to completely unravel after two years, that's a problem. Our final stop was at Teavana to sample the fares (now that I'm a tea fanatic). The kids tried the iced herbal tea and liked it. I'll have to make some at home.
I had promised the kids that if they were good at the mall, we'd go to a playground. So we left Tysons and headed for Clemyjontri Park.
The kids had a blast but now I was really DYING in my blue jeans. I mean, look at THEIR faces and imagine what mine looked like.
They really, really wanted to go on the carousel and of course I'd left my wallet in the car so we went back to get money, bought tokens and enjoyed a ride on the carousel before leaving.
Then we played a quick game of Follow-the-Leader...and headed home. *whew*
When we got home I assembled a doll house for Kardynn.
And as if I hadn't already had enough time outside, then I mowed the grass.
What a crazy weekend!
Yesterday we drove my Mom to Reagan National Airport to catch her flight to Florida. We dropped her off around 8:40 am and then I wanted to kill some time before getting back on 66, because the traffic going back towards home had looked nasty.
First we pulled in to Gravelly Point and watched planes landing and taking off. The kids loved it...well...Kiersten was not 100% sold. You'll notice she would plug her ears as the planes went over us. It *was* quite loud.
Next we pulled off to explore Roosevelt Island. We walked to the memorial and then wandered around on the trails.
While walking around I realized I was WAY overdressed. It had been cool the last couple of days so I'd been wearing jeans. We left the house early enough that I didn't realize the cold snap had ended. I was still wearing jeans. By 9:30 am I was dying.
I also realized that I have a completely irrational fear related to the kids. When we were walking on the bridge between the island and the parking lot, if Kardynn would get too close to the side, I would seriously start almost hyper ventilating. I worried that she'd slip through the cracks...or best case scenario, simply lose a shoe. I kept trying to rationalize it away but if she started to get close, I would literally get dizzy. I had to go grab her away from the side and encourage her back towards the middle of the bridge. I was not quite as loopy about the older kids (the older they are the less it seemed to bother me - as you can see from the above picture of Oskar). But yeah, if Kardynn got too close to the edge, I would get woozy.
But back to the day's adventures, I wanted to run by Tysons Corner and take care of a few errands. I had a pair of Hanna Anderrson PJs that had had a seam come out. HA was awesome and they gave me a full credit for those PJs two years later. (Unfortunately I got a really good deal when I bought them. *hmph*)
Then I went by Pottery Barn Kids with a towel that I bought around the same time. The one seam has completely ripped out and it's all fraying along that side. The lady said, "normal wear and tear". Uh...then never mind buying towels from PBK in the future because the only other towel that has ever done this to me was a cheap-o towel that I bought at WalMart and that one was fine for like ten years before it happened. What a bummer because usually I think Pottery Barn has good customer service. I'm not sure what I thought they should do but if they think it's normal for a towel's side to completely unravel after two years, that's a problem. Our final stop was at Teavana to sample the fares (now that I'm a tea fanatic). The kids tried the iced herbal tea and liked it. I'll have to make some at home.
I had promised the kids that if they were good at the mall, we'd go to a playground. So we left Tysons and headed for Clemyjontri Park.
The kids had a blast but now I was really DYING in my blue jeans. I mean, look at THEIR faces and imagine what mine looked like.
They really, really wanted to go on the carousel and of course I'd left my wallet in the car so we went back to get money, bought tokens and enjoyed a ride on the carousel before leaving.
Then we played a quick game of Follow-the-Leader...and headed home. *whew*
When we got home I assembled a doll house for Kardynn.
And as if I hadn't already had enough time outside, then I mowed the grass.
Tuesday, August 3
Heather Engen Photography
I don't know what I'm doing. Don't start making "What else is new?" cracks! I can't figure out where to post my photos...and more importantly, what I'm doing with my life. As my most dedicated followers know (Mom?), this summer I've been exploring photography as a potential career path. And I think the most important thing that I've learned from this is that I am SO not ready for anything like this right now. But of course I still love photography and I still love taking pictures of/for people. So for now I just want to keep practicing on the kind people I know. People who are gracious when I totally screw up. (Thank you Aunt Esther!)
So...in the meantime...I had made a "Heather Engen Photography" page on Facebook. Should I close that down? Should I post my photos there? What to do, what to do? Or should I post my photos to Flickr (which is kinda what I had been doing). Or both? I need to decide.
So...in the meantime...I had made a "Heather Engen Photography" page on Facebook. Should I close that down? Should I post my photos there? What to do, what to do? Or should I post my photos to Flickr (which is kinda what I had been doing). Or both? I need to decide.
Saturday, July 31
Work
Kardynn apparently thinks that Dwight goes to work "at the gym" and "plays basketball". He wishes that was his job!
I can't remember what prompted it but last week the other kids and I got into a discussion about work and jobs. Oskar said, "Being a mom is a really hard job. You have to discipline people." And that was the extent of his description.
We had some big milestones last week and all of them happened at the gym. The first big milestone is that Oskar and Annika went down the enclosed water slide. A few weeks ago Annika tried the open water slide and she had a hard time getting out of the water at the base of the slide. So I told her she wasn't quite ready for it. But she's been making great headway at swim lessons so I encouraged her to try it again. She did great. After a few times down that I told her I thought she'd be fine to do the other one too. She and Oskar both decided to try it. They went down several times. Oskar loved it. Annika got water up her nose on one of descents and she didn't like that but I think overall she liked it. On the weekend we dragged Dwight to the gym with us and they all rode the waterslides together numerous times.
They had another success which I initially forgot about (and that did not happen at the gym). We went swimming at a neighbor's house and they both swam in the deep end (sans life jacket). Annika tended to make sure she wasn't too far from either the edge of the pool or a float but she certainly does not lack for confidence. Oskar, on the other hand, swims much better than he realizes.
The second success at the gym happened on Thursday. I met up with my friend to work out. When we dropped the kids off at the child care center, I realized that Kardynn's diaper was wet. I no longer carry a diaper bag - of course - so to spare me a trip out to the car (in the rain), my friend gave me a pull-up to use. About 50 minutes into our workout, I got paged to the child care center. When I got down there, they told me that Kardynn needed help in the bathroom. I said, "Oh, she's not potty trained". In the meantime, she had spotted me and came running up shouting, "Mommy, I need to poop." Alrighty then. So I took her into the bathroom. And guess what?! She used the potty! Hurray! Now I need to teach her the difference between peeing and pooping. *hehe* When she informs me that she's poopy, 90% of the time she's actually wet. When she does poop, her trend is to flat out deny anything is going on. Strange child.
I can't remember what prompted it but last week the other kids and I got into a discussion about work and jobs. Oskar said, "Being a mom is a really hard job. You have to discipline people." And that was the extent of his description.
We had some big milestones last week and all of them happened at the gym. The first big milestone is that Oskar and Annika went down the enclosed water slide. A few weeks ago Annika tried the open water slide and she had a hard time getting out of the water at the base of the slide. So I told her she wasn't quite ready for it. But she's been making great headway at swim lessons so I encouraged her to try it again. She did great. After a few times down that I told her I thought she'd be fine to do the other one too. She and Oskar both decided to try it. They went down several times. Oskar loved it. Annika got water up her nose on one of descents and she didn't like that but I think overall she liked it. On the weekend we dragged Dwight to the gym with us and they all rode the waterslides together numerous times.
They had another success which I initially forgot about (and that did not happen at the gym). We went swimming at a neighbor's house and they both swam in the deep end (sans life jacket). Annika tended to make sure she wasn't too far from either the edge of the pool or a float but she certainly does not lack for confidence. Oskar, on the other hand, swims much better than he realizes.
The second success at the gym happened on Thursday. I met up with my friend to work out. When we dropped the kids off at the child care center, I realized that Kardynn's diaper was wet. I no longer carry a diaper bag - of course - so to spare me a trip out to the car (in the rain), my friend gave me a pull-up to use. About 50 minutes into our workout, I got paged to the child care center. When I got down there, they told me that Kardynn needed help in the bathroom. I said, "Oh, she's not potty trained". In the meantime, she had spotted me and came running up shouting, "Mommy, I need to poop." Alrighty then. So I took her into the bathroom. And guess what?! She used the potty! Hurray! Now I need to teach her the difference between peeing and pooping. *hehe* When she informs me that she's poopy, 90% of the time she's actually wet. When she does poop, her trend is to flat out deny anything is going on. Strange child.
Saturday, July 24
Whole Grain Pancakes
I made whole grain pancakes for breakfast this morning. When I tasted them I thought, "Oh man, the kids are going to pitch a fit." But I was wrong. If they noticed a difference, they didn't mention it. I added frozen blackberries to part of the batch and Oskar and I both agreed that was delicious. Anyway, point is. Sometimes our kids aren't as finicky as we expect them to be.
Friday, July 23
Growing Up
Annika amazes me with her seemingly fearless approach to life. Last week she and Oskar did a rock climbing camp and she easily conquered that challenge. She had no trouble reaching the top of any of the routes they did. Oskar said, "Mom, she's younger than me and better than me!" (I admire him too for the way he wants the best for everyone around him. He's a very selfless person.)
Yesterday Annika went down the waterslide at the pool again and this time had absolutely no problems. I encouraged both of them to try the covered waterslide and they did. Oskar loved it. Annika was not as sold but she still tried it several times.
Speaking of Oskar, yesterday we were walking out of a building and Kardynn pitched a fit for some reason or another. (Who knows why?) I started walking away (making sure she was safe from cars, of course). But Oskar was so upset. "Mom, she can't get up. She needs you to pick her up." Twice he tried to go pick her up himself but of course she shooed him away because she was having a tantrum. He's an amazing kid. I went back and picked her up. Not because SHE was demanding it but because HE wanted it.
Oh my...they're all growing up so fast!
Yesterday Annika went down the waterslide at the pool again and this time had absolutely no problems. I encouraged both of them to try the covered waterslide and they did. Oskar loved it. Annika was not as sold but she still tried it several times.
Speaking of Oskar, yesterday we were walking out of a building and Kardynn pitched a fit for some reason or another. (Who knows why?) I started walking away (making sure she was safe from cars, of course). But Oskar was so upset. "Mom, she can't get up. She needs you to pick her up." Twice he tried to go pick her up himself but of course she shooed him away because she was having a tantrum. He's an amazing kid. I went back and picked her up. Not because SHE was demanding it but because HE wanted it.
Oh my...they're all growing up so fast!
Friday, July 16
Busy Week
The past week has been busy, busy, busy. Last weekend I took photos of sweet baby Cameron. He was such a cutie! And it was a really good learning experience. Mainly I learned that I still have a lot to learn!
After the photo shoot, the kids and I went to Dad's place for a sleepover. The sleepover part was a bit of a disaster in that it was nearly impossible to get my girls to sleep. But when that small detail fades from my memory, I'll have nothing but fond recollections!
On Sunday we went to the Natural History Museum downtown. We took the metro to add to the adventure...which turned out to be a mistake because they were doing maintenance and single tracking. We spent entirely too much time getting to and from the museum and not enough time wandering around it but such is the substance of all the best adventures, right?!
The three big kids had camp this week. Oskar and Annika did a rock climbing camp and Kiersten did an art camp. After day one Oskar said to me, "Mom, Annika is younger than me but she's better at rock climbing! Can you believe it?!" Yep, Annika took to rock climbing. Today when I picked them up, Oskar pointed out to me a smiley face that Annika drew at the top of one of the climbs (is it still called a pitch on a wall?). She went to the top many times and Oskar wondered whether next time she should do Advanced Rock Climbing. Today I watched the kids climb and Oskar would climb up quite comfortably and then all of a sudden he'd reach a height that felt uncomfortable to him and he'd just stop. But he told me he knew he could reach the top because each time he went a little higher than he did the time before. I'm very proud of him for stretching his comfort zone a little. And it makes me happy that he loved camp despite his fear of heights. Several times I said, "I'm sorry you don't like rock climbing buddy" and he'd say, "I love it Mom!" So it was a good lesson for me to back off and stop putting my grown up spin on things. He also drove me crazy all week telling me that he wants to do "Rock and Swim" (which is an all day camp that starts at the rock wall and ends up at - you guessed it - the pool).
I uploaded pictures to Flickr but it's getting very late and today is another busy, busy day so I really need to get to sleep. I'll have to add some photos later on...maybe Sunday?
After the photo shoot, the kids and I went to Dad's place for a sleepover. The sleepover part was a bit of a disaster in that it was nearly impossible to get my girls to sleep. But when that small detail fades from my memory, I'll have nothing but fond recollections!
On Sunday we went to the Natural History Museum downtown. We took the metro to add to the adventure...which turned out to be a mistake because they were doing maintenance and single tracking. We spent entirely too much time getting to and from the museum and not enough time wandering around it but such is the substance of all the best adventures, right?!
The three big kids had camp this week. Oskar and Annika did a rock climbing camp and Kiersten did an art camp. After day one Oskar said to me, "Mom, Annika is younger than me but she's better at rock climbing! Can you believe it?!" Yep, Annika took to rock climbing. Today when I picked them up, Oskar pointed out to me a smiley face that Annika drew at the top of one of the climbs (is it still called a pitch on a wall?). She went to the top many times and Oskar wondered whether next time she should do Advanced Rock Climbing. Today I watched the kids climb and Oskar would climb up quite comfortably and then all of a sudden he'd reach a height that felt uncomfortable to him and he'd just stop. But he told me he knew he could reach the top because each time he went a little higher than he did the time before. I'm very proud of him for stretching his comfort zone a little. And it makes me happy that he loved camp despite his fear of heights. Several times I said, "I'm sorry you don't like rock climbing buddy" and he'd say, "I love it Mom!" So it was a good lesson for me to back off and stop putting my grown up spin on things. He also drove me crazy all week telling me that he wants to do "Rock and Swim" (which is an all day camp that starts at the rock wall and ends up at - you guessed it - the pool).
I uploaded pictures to Flickr but it's getting very late and today is another busy, busy day so I really need to get to sleep. I'll have to add some photos later on...maybe Sunday?
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