Wednesday, May 27, 2009

Save the cheese!

This week we've been dog-sitting Higgins, a bulldog belonging to Tyler's brother Joel. Despite Higgins and Angus coming from the same breeder, they are completely different physically. Angus looks like a fat slug, and Higgins is a trim machine, although they have the same penchant for snoring in the shade. We've also discovered that both dogs love cheese. And poor Charlotte, at only 33 inches high, is their prime target for hostile takeovers. Charlotte also loves cheese, and spent most of yesterday afternoon running from the dogs, waving her cheddar over her head and screeching "Not yet!" She never latched onto the toddler's favorite word "no," prefering the more polite version "not yet," although the meaning is the same--"no way."


Sunday, May 17, 2009

Notes from the field: boys and girls are different


Last week we had an extended family picnic at the botanic gardens. Three families, three assorted fast food offerings (no one felt like cooking), and some picnic tables by a fast-moving creek made for a great evening. We spread out our paper bags while the kids wandered around, until Carden shooed them back to their own table: "Your food is over there. This is our feast." Who knew he'd be so possessive over chicken sandwiches and french fries.

The gardens were lovely, full of spring flowers and blooming trees. It seems to be a popular spot with wedding photographers and we saw many couples doing photo shoots. To appreciate this, you have to understand that Charlotte, not yet 2, is in a full-blown princess phase. Her limited vocabulary has a large chunk devoted to words like "princess," "pretty princess," "dress," "pretty dress," "shoes," "pretty shoes," etc. You get the idea. So we're wandering through the gardens, and around the bend we come across one of the brides. Charlotte stops dead in her tracks, mouth open, staring at this girl in clouds of white tulle. She doesn't move for a full minute, and even once I call her name, she takes a half-hearted step toward me, not taking her eyes off the bride until they've left. Princesses in real life! Who knew?

A few minutes later we come around another bend and spot another bride. I can hear my 5-year-old niece excitedly telling her mother, "That one had a tiara! The other one only had lace on her hair. I want a tiara."

A few minutes later we spot yet another bride. The 5-year-old girl says in a dreamy voice, "Look Mom, a bride!" To which Carden responds, "Sheesh, not another one!"

Tuesday, May 5, 2009

So what do you do...

What do you do when you go in to check on the kids at night and discover that Charlotte is sleeping peacefully...soaked in vomit?

Tiptoe back out and pretend you didn't notice?

Or wake her up, clean her up, change all the bedding, and listen to her scream during the whole process?

Sigh.

You do what I did--call for Dad!!

And to his everlasting credit, he did it all. Even after he'd been doing it for the two days that I was gone all day at Women's Conference at BYU and he was taking care of the kids solo. Even after the first episode was Charlotte throwing up while they were at the pool watching the boys' swimming lesson.

Hurray for dads.