TGIM

The big, big news around here is that K & O got their hair cut!!! (Locs trimmed) This is a very big deal to us, and this is the boys' second haircut ever in their lives (I posted about their first haircuts here). I cut it (for now I'd never let anyone else touch it!!!!!!!!), and although it was a major endeavor for the whole family (washing two heads of hair, re-twisting two heads of locs, and trimming times two), it turned out looking great if I do say so myself. Tonight, getting ready for bed, looking at himself in the bathroom mirror, Kyle said, "My hair looks awesome!" And yes indeedy! It sure does!

Life is moving way too fast right now and it feels hard to keep up with -- let alone keep the blog up to speed. But in other big news, we've finally given in and implemented a sticker-chart-type-deal... something we've resisted doing up until now. After four and a half years of watching pretty much everyone we know do these sorts of reward-based systems with their young kids, we finally caved in, and are now reaping the benefits. We started Tuesday. We call them "Earning Charts." For this week the deal was that if they did a good job (Kyle at school and Owen at bedtime--- their current individual problem spots), then they'd earn a trip to the movie theater to see Madagascar. A sticker for each day of doing a good job-- stickers on all four days -- Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday = earning a trip to the movie theater "with popcorn and candy!!!" They did it and were so darn proud. And we were so darn relieved. Today was the big day. Braydon and the boys got to see the movie. I got to hang out with Little Miss (who we did not want to expose to a major motion picture yet). Here are K & O, so proud, with their end-of-the-week, all-stickered-up, Earning Charts:

'Tis the season. That's for sure. One thing about living with two four year olds during the month of December is that not an hour goes by that you're not reminded that Christmas is coming. Kyle, in particular, is soooo into it. The Saturday after Thanksgiving he went down to the basement and found the box with the "Blow Up" in it (click here for last year's post about this), and managed (by enlisting the help of his brother-- the box is heavy) to get it upstairs, insisting that we put it up in the front lawn ASAP. Braydon and I call this "Kyle's Blow Up" because, for real, it is all Kyle. Kyle looks at his blow-up a hundred times a day, at least. And carries his little Christmas snow globe with him everywhere he goes. And sings Jingle Bells in the shower (I found him doing that yesterday morning). And is obsessively asking questions about angels and the baby Jesus and "navivity scenes." And and and. He seems to consider it his mission in life to keep us anticipating the next big thing (and during the month of December the next big thing is really big). We've had two little dustings of snow since the blow up went up. 'Tis the season.

We had a jam-packed weekend. Saturday morning was the absolutely beautiful Spiral of Light at the boys' school. (I mentioned it last year in this post). Have I mentioned that we love our Waldorf school? We love our Waldorf school. As I sat there, watching my boys with their little candles walk the spiral so calmly and peacefully and reflectively, I kept thinking to myself "no amount of money is too much for them to be able to have this." Moments like that are so sweet for me as a mom, because I spend so many more moments thinking "oh my God, how are we going to navigate formal education for our children???????????????????" I can't help it. I'm a sociologist. Anyway, Saturday afternoon was Zoe's birthday party... which Kyle and Owen had long been anticipating because... it was... an ICE SKATING party!!! Here they are, their first time ever on ice skates. They loved it. (An understatement.)

Again, Braydon went skating with them while I hung out with Little Miss. At one point, while Braydon was going to get their coats from the car, the boys disappeared and I had to go find them. Here's what I found (see photo below): ~~~~It was such a riot! Without them realizing it I watched them sit there like that, perfectly still, completely in their own little world, for the longest time. They were absolutely enthralled with watching the zamboni cleaning up the ice rink!!!!!

As for Meera... this weekend she did something that really scares me. She refused to sleep for her morning nap on Saturday and Sunday. I tried everything, but she would not nap. She'd scream and kick her legs every time I laid her down. She has never before skipped a morning nap. Never. And here's the scary part--- I am almost 100% certain that she refused to go down out of her own fear of missing out on all the fun with K & O in the house. This morning, (Monday), as soon as the boys had left for school, she fussed her typical 'pleeeease put me in my crib - I'm ready for my morning nap' fuss. And sure enough, she went down for it. She loves just simply being in their presence so much that she refuses her most favorite activity in the world-- sleeping???!? Scary, scary, scary stuff. Anyway, so as to not tip the balance (with all the photos of the boys above)... here's the Weekend Sleepless Wonder with her third favorite guy (after K and O)... Cooper.

And here she is, when she should be sleeping, but is, instead, hanging out. Literally:

One last little tid-bit I want to mention from the weekend. Early Saturday morning Owen somehow managed to get a paper clip jammed between his teeth. ??? At first it seemed relatively non-serious. Until we realized that we really could not get it out. Really. And then Braydon started slightly freaking out. Which makes me seriously freak out because he almost never freaks out. Visions of bringing Owen to the E.R. for this ridiculous situation were swirling in my mind as I tried hard not to panic. But we did eventually manage to carefully straighten out the paper clip and slowly glide it out without too much pain or trauma (although there was plenty of drama). Anyway, at the end of the day, I can pretty much guarantee he won't do that again.

TGIM! (Thank God Its Monday!)