Hard at Work

Summer often translates to all play, no work. For many, it's quite the opposite. I've managed to do both.  In the past few weeks, Micro has been doing swim classes, a girlfriend and I actually got to do a much-deserved weekend getaway, and now, we're organizing our house. The latter, is of course, something we struggle to exercise daily. Believe it or not, we painted our playroom. It's a big deal, ya'll. Finding and dedicating time to do these things is not easy when you have young children. Just try. 

We plan on painting our guest room/office too. My goal by end of September is to hang pictures (at least most of the ones I unpacked). Big projects take up LOTS OF TIME. Time that is few and precious, but I'm committing to. Forgive the sporadic posting here, because you see, I have my hands full. Though we're approaching a little over a year and half in our new home, it still feels like we haven't done much to feel as if we've "moved in." But I guess, you homeowners out there know that feeling too. When you own a home, there's ALWAYS something to improve. 

Our upcoming weekend consists of a barbeque with good friends and birthday treats with cousins. Hope you're having an awesome week. 

In my brother's footsteps

Not surprisingly, Micron is in AWE of her big brother. He is her hero, her idol, her best friend and constant companion. Sorry, Hello Kitty, but it's true. As the younger sibling, Micron wants to emulate everything her kuya does. So when her Kuya gets plenty of praise for "going potty," she wants that same praise shown her way. I'm happy to report that my little girl has successfully gone potty five times in a row. And that's not because I told her to. It's because she goes when her brother goes. Micron will tug at her pants and attempt to throw her diaper off (which she can, unless I can stop her before she flings it off) and screams to me, "Diaper on! Diaper on! I like it!"--I'll have to translate for you all--Micron speaks opposites. She says "on" when she means "off," and "like" really means, "no way in heck do I want it." Trust me, it took me awhile to figure this out. There was plenty of pouting and temper tantrums when I tried to put her pants back on when she's screaming in my ear, "I like it!", while throwing her pants clear across the room. Yeah, women aren't hard to figure out at all. 

So, much to my surprise, when Micron began saying, "Diaper on," I thought she wanted me to change her. Instead, as soon as I pulled the diaper off, she ran to the potty and goes wee-wee. Imagine my shock to see her pee in the potty. I was totally unprepared for this because it felt like I had just potty-trained my son a few months ago and chronicled our ups and downs on this blog. Now, my twenty-two month old baby girl, is telling me that she's ready for pull-ups and the whole potty-training cycle. I heard that girls are much easier to train and learn faster. I'm sure I owe a debt of gratitude to Micro for encouraging this new interest in becoming a "big girl." I just was not prepared, and truth be told, I'm feeling rather lazy about it. Instead of being diligent about taking her to the potty every so often, I'm taking it casual, like I did with Micro--but even more so. 

As happy as I am about her eagerness to potty train, I admit, our summer has been pleasurably busy, and the thought of potty-training makes me fatigued. I'll keep you guys updated on how this is going. I'm sure there are a few mothers rolling their eyes and want to tell me to take advantage of this right now. You'll have to forgive me, because, frankly, I'm just not ready to go down that road again. Yet.

It's a Date!

A few weeks ago, I had the pleasure of spending some much needed quality time with my man. My littlest dude. I dropped Micron off at my friend's house, while Micro and I had ourselves a date. As a parent of two kids, it's not easy setting aside some one-on-one time with each child. This is something that both my husband and I feel is important to do. 

I had been wanting to do a date night with each of my kids (Mr. Fliz will do the same). I asked Micro if he'd go on a date with me --"Just Mama and me?," he asked my husband. He was ecstatic. That morning, after dropping off his sister, I took him to a place nearby called Little House Cafe. It was the perfect date spot for my son and I.

He ordered whatever he wanted for breakfast, which consisted of his own big cup of  hot chocolate, banana bread french toast complete with banana slices and whip cream. A kid's dream breakfast (and a parent's too!). I had a latte and a breakfast panini. Micro had a huge grin the entire time and we sat,ate,talked about how much fun he's had in preschool, and our plans for summer. Micro then got to choose our next activity and he chose to go to one of his favorite playgrounds in our area. We spent the next hour scooting our behinds down slides, running across bridges, and swinging our legs on the swings. 

My date with my littlest dude was magical. Since Micron's arrival, Micro and I have had our moments where I've felt a slight disconnect. Though he loves his sister dearly, he had missed Mama's undivided attention. This was one of hopefully, many reminders that I'll always be there. I can't wait to do another date with my special guy. I love you Micro, ALWAYS AND FOREVER. 

Preschool Promotion

This is better late than never--but, since Micro finished three sessions of preschool, and though he isn't really getting "promoted" to the next level (for 4 and 5-year olds), he still got to "graduate" with his class. Micro was the youngest in his class and actually got into preschool as soon as he turned 3 (after having been on a wait-list). Most of the kids in his class all turned 4 or will be before the next session of school starts. Which means they move on to other preschools or move up into the next age group. Micro however, will not be 4 yet, and will complete another session for 3-year olds. Fine by me, so long as he's learning and socializing. 

I'm sharing some photos of his luau themed "promotion ceremony" on the last day of preschool. There was a mini-podium for the graduates. Each kid told the class what he/she wanted to be when they grew up. Micro wants to be a paleontologist. Not surprising as the kid has been into dinosaurs the past six months. We'll see.

Congratulations kiddies, you all were so great! I'm glad I had the chance to volunteer at school and get a peek into the everyday madness. To Micro--Daddy,Kaia, and I, are SO VERY PROUD of you. We look forward to celebrating all your accomplishments. 

Summer Daze

We're especially busy during Summer . . . relaxing and enjoying the outdoors. Below is a peek as to what we've been up to lately. 

We've got a long trip to the East Coast coming up. We'll be visiting family in North Carolina and then driving to Virginia for a few more days. I'm excited as I've never been to N.C. and this will be the longest drive we'll have to endure with both kids (longer than 4.5 hours). 

There's been a lot of time spent at the pool and playgrounds. My in-laws paid us a quick weekend visit and we took the family to Six Flags Discovery Kingdom. Micro is currently in swimming lessons for a few weeks and we're thinking of placing Micron in as well. The girl has no healthy fear of the water. She's a few months shy of turning TWO, and I can't believe how fast time has flown. I hope all of you are enjoying the outdoors as much as we are and making plenty of memories that involve splashing, running around endlessly in the great expanse, barbequing, beach fun, and cool nights cuddling with loved ones.