The Problem With Height

The problem with having a petite eldest daughter and a Texas-size middle child is the competition. When we venture out in public, we are constantly being asked if the girls are twins. They're not - they're 20 months apart! We're considering never leaving the house again. The hurt feelings and sibling rivalry are creating quite a bit of angst from the shorter half of the family.

Until now, Maddie has been able to use her size to the full. Until now, she's been bigger then Eva, if only by a couple centimetres. Not anymore! Eva has defied gravity and shot up like a weed - complete with long limbs, streamlined body and smooth coordination. She's lost her baby fat, built muscle and is no longer tripping over stray cat hairs and bumping into door jams. She's a kid...not a baby, not even a toddler. Sigh.

I've noticed that Maddie has stopped pushing Eva against the wall to measure herself against Eva's frame. There's not much point, since Maddie now knows that she and Eva are equal in height (maybe even a little unequal to Eva's advantage). Mad can't bear the disappointment. I found her sullen in the bathroom the other day, looking at herself in the mirror. "Mom? Am I short?" My heart broke for her. Though height isn't a big deal to me, I know it means a lot to a 5 year old. What could I say? I assured her that even if Eva was taller, Maddie would always be older. And, besides, "You're just the perfect Maddie size."

And she is.

It's a No-Go

I applied for an internship in Davao, Philippines but they didn't have any openings left for this year. The director encouraged me to re-apply in the new year for a place next summer.

Am I sad about it? Yes, I guess so. Like I wrote in my last post, I was trying not to get my hopes up. There's really not much point in being sad, anyway, since that won't do me much good. I may as well just get on with it and put my energies toward another project.

If there is anything I've learned thus far, it's that stuff happens for a reason. Good stuff, bad stuff...it all fits into the master plan. I'll look back on this in a couple years and go, "Ah! That's why I couldn't go to Davao!"

Kind of like the time when I was in college and I couldn't find an apartment to save my life. It was to the point where I was about to quit my job (you kind of need a place to live in the same city you're working at) when I was offered free room and board with an old lady who just wanted company! She and her multitude of cats were such a blessing to me....excluding the cat hair all over everything and the never-cleaned litter boxes and the cat dishes on the kitchen counter (think about it...the cats walk all over the litter and then climb up on the kitchen counter to eat. yum!). I ate out a lot that summer.

Or the time my long-time boyfriend dumped me and I cried for months and months. Oh, the angst! If that hadn't happened, I wouldn't have moved to New Brunswick and met Richard, and had 3 pretty stinkin' cute kids and been married to a guy who isn't emotionally challenged. It's nice not to have to wonder what pole the hubby is at today. :)

Anyway - all things happen for the good, right? Now, bring on the good!

Graedy Poop Update #3

We finally got an appointment for Graedon's allergy testing. If you recall, he was having bowel problems and we figured it was allergies to something. We cut out dairy, but to no avail. His poop was still gross, and his growth too slow.

The test was challenging! He didn't want to cooperate with the Ms. H., the tester lady, and after a dozen items, he'd had enough. We were able to test for the most common allergens, though, and here's what came of it: Cow dairy, goat dairy and wheat were testing above the allergy level.

So, Graedy is now on a 10 day fast of ALL things dairy and wheat. No milk, no ice cream, no butter, no yoghurt, no baking with milk...Wheat is even tougher. Anything that is baked is out, including cereals, crackers and even some condiments and sauces. Ms. H said that if he has so much as a mouthful of milk, we've screwed up the fast and will have to start over (she didn't say "screwed", but she meant that). If after 10 days there is improvement, then we need to go for 6 weeks! Then, start reintroducing wheat slowly, followed by dairy if all is well. She said not to give him soy milk because it has too much estrogen in it and could mess up his hormones. I don't need a PMSing 18 month old on my hands...the terrible twos are bad enough!

He's also on a probiotic pill. Since Graedy's had diarrhea for almost a year, he has flushed all the bacteria (good and bad) from his system and created havoc with his balances. The probiotics should help with that.

Anyone see the episode of Grey's Anatomy where a lady was self-treating herself with antibiotics she bought over the internet? She had wiped out all her bacteria, and so Kortez (I think) gave her a procedure where they had to tube her husband's stool into her stomache through her nose to replace the bacteria. I am so glad we didn't have to do that! I think that might be bunk, anyway.

So, there you have it.

Happy Sad Finger Puppets

In keeping with my new hobby, funky knitting, here is one of my completed projects:


These little finger puppets are super easy, and only take an evening to knit up - including the hair and facial features. On the one side, the puppet is happy! On the other side, the puppet is sad. :(

I'd like to make a whole crew of them!

Baby Boy!

My cell phone is no longer my 24/7 companion!

After being harassed and bullied into scheduling a c-section for Friday (she was told, after all, that after 41 weeks there was very little chance that she'd go into labour on her own ??), she woke to contractions on Sunday morning. A long first stage later, she pushed her baby boy into the world Sunday evening! She did it! VBAC!

In her words - maybe that doctor (who made her schedule the section) irritated the baby just as much as he irritated her. She showed them!

It's a wonderful thing!

Waiting

I have not too much to report this week. I am waiting, waiting, waiting.

Baby has not come yet, but that's not unusual. Due dates should really be called due months. Anywhere from week 38 to 42 is healthy and normal, and a woman is not technically post-dates until the end of the 42nd week. OBGYNs around here (and I suspect in most North American hospitals) get impatient around 40 weeks, sometimes even before. For now, my client is taking it in stride and making wonderful, informed, independant decisions. Kudos!

I have a trip in the works. I am still waiting for my application to be accepted or rejected. I am not getting excited about it until I know for sure. Really. I'm not. Well, maybe a bit. :)

Until then, I a drinking tea, cleaning house and playing the waiting game.

Brushes

Check out Graedy's new brush cut! And, on the subject of brushes, teethbrushing is his new favourite activity!
Is there anything cuter than fat little legs crammed into striped ankle socks?! Aww!

Do You Doula?

Wonderful video on doulas! Enjoy!

Banana Cozy

My mom taught me to knit and crochet when I was just a wee lassie. Now, after years of hiatus, I've dusted off my needles and picked it up again.

I'm not a reindeer sweater kind of gal, and I'm not really into knits. I do like fitted tuques, though, but not scarves. So, I've decided to focus on the non-traditional side of knitting. Enter: Banana Cozy!

For those of you who love bananas but are frustrated by the bruises they get from being jostled around in your lunch pail all day - the Banana Cozy is for you! As a bonus, the cozy also keeps your banana nice and warm in the winter. Click herefor the pattern!

The Project

Check out our newest project! I'm trying to get the kids organized in the morning so that it's less bedlam to get everyone dressed/washed/fed & schooled. Enter: The Project. I call it The Project because I don't know what to call it. Maybe something like Manequin Mini Me, or Silly Silhouette, or Model Me Outfits...comment with your ideas, wouldja?
Here is the finished product. We took some rolled paper and traced the girls' silhouettes. They then coloured them to resemble themselves. There has been some creative license, as you can see. Mad doesn't really have glasses or green hair, but she does regularly have Band-Aids on her knees.
Here's a close-up of the pet cat Maddie drew.
Ta-da! Every evening, we pick out their outfits and hang them on The Projects. In the morning, there's no fighting or dilly dallying over what outfits to wear...easy, breezy!

Awana Closing

Awana is finished for the summer. The church had an awards ceremony where the kids stood at the front of the church and received a little gift. Maddie stood up there all on her own, without hauling me up there! That's a huge step for shy Maddie.
Here she is, saying her name into the mic. Again, that's huge! I was a bit surprised that she didn't duck behind the drum set or something.
Eva was home sick, but she still enjoyed her gift pack. Don't the glasses make her look like a rock star!?

Roses Are Red

Richard sent me flowers last week. He ordered them from a shop in town that uses the local taxi company to do their deliveries.

My friend came over the same day, and exclaimed, "Oh! The pretty roses! Who gave them to you?"

Me: "Richard gave them to me."

Maddie: "No, Daddy didn't give them to you! The taxi man gave them to you!"

Does that mean I'm going steady with the taxi driver? eep!