Video

Claire counts.

Theories?

I am hearing things. Unexplainable things. Here's the set-up:

Our kitchen is downstairs, as most kitchens are, and Kate's bedroom is right above it. The girls' bathroom is also above the kitchen, a little bit towards the middle, and probably above the cook top and microwave. Kate's bedroom is carpeted; the bathroom is tile. A few times a day for at least the past week, I randomly hear what sounds like someone dragging a heavy object across a solid surface floor. Specifically, it sounds like a bed or large table grinding across a tile or hardwood floor. This happens when there is either no one upstairs, or when the girls are asleep. In any case, there is no piece of furniture that either of them could be dragging around to make the sound.

It's not really creeping me out; it's just weird, and I can't explain it. In the vicinity are:

• a refrigerator (with ice maker, but we rarely use it, so it rarely makes ice, and even the making of the ice does not sound like what I keep hearing)
• the laundry room (neither the washer nor the dryer are in use when it happens)
• a water heater (in a cubby hole in the garage, right next to the laundry room. This is the only thing that is a possibility in my mind, although I can't see how it could be making this noise.).

Any ideas? Is our house haunted? It seems a little new for this. It is intriguing, however.

A classy night

We went to McDonald's for dinner. I just couldn't bear the thought of making another meal for the 3 of us (Tim is TDY again). Kate is back to her picky phase, and Claire is starting to like how her sister thinks. There is not a lot of eating that goes on at the table unless it involves macaroni and cheese, hot dogs, peanut butter and jelly, cheese, or fish sticks. Unless you count ketchup for Claire. That kid could eat her body weight in Heinz on a weekly basis.

We made it to McDonald's with only one minor incident (Kate has learned how to unbuckle her seat belt while sitting in her booster seat, and has also learned that spankings follow any such action that occurs when the car is in motion). Once inside, they made straightaway for the prize vault to see what they would get in their Happy Meal boxes. Is that a sad indication of how often we visit Old McDonald's? Really, we go maybe once a month, if that. I think Kate has a keen memory for certain things. I guess I shouldn't also mention that Claire can spot the golden arches from approximately 2.3 miles away?

We got our meals and sat down to enjoy some greasy food in the play area, which is the only place we can now sit when at McDonald's. I proceeded to eat my hamburger while watching a little boy and his father? grandfather? interact. Grandpa (I'm sticking with it: he was older and didn't seem to have a firm grasp on discipline that one usually possesses as parent) was eating an ice cream cone, and apparently the boy had already finished his. He was whining for another one. Then, after sliding down the curly slide, he grabbed the crotch of his pants and sort of pulled them up, sharing a view of the wet spot with everyone in the play area. There was a small exchange between man and boy, and then the boy climbed right up on the play equipment and slid down the slide again. I was totally dumbfounded. I think my jaw might have dropped open. There was no ensuing trip to the potty, and no change of clothes. Needless to say, there was not a lot of playing on the equipment by Kate and Claire post dinner.

Anyway, Claire had ketchup all over her (see above), even in her armpit. How does that happen? We drove home (to the constant sound of, "May the force be with you," from the back seat) and immediately had a long, cleansing bath. Tim is on his way back from NC and will arrive in time to cook the next meal. Woot.

Disregard the mess, and pick a color

Kate's room is still in total disarray, mostly because I haven't purchased any additional furniture for her yet, beyond the prized red bed. Don't even ask about bedding at this point. I am undecided as to which color of wood looks better with the red: the light (crib color), or the dark (dresser color). Which one do you like best?

Called Out...

Yes I took the camera, Elizabeth, and yes I took some pictures. I'm sure summer in Germany is the best time to visit - it was beautiful and reminded me of Oregon...except for the DJ on the radio. The music was the same as here (I missed all the Hasslehauf songs) but Kid Rock is more fun to listen to on the autobahn. The drive to my meetings was a bit crowded, so I took some pictures... but at 5 am on the way back the road was wide open!

Fabulous Cathedrals in the old world.

I had a few hours free but no guide and no tour book... "Beef" loaned me a GPS though that got me to Trier for a few hours, and back home via country roads (with no map of course). I enjoyed my six hour tour of Germany. Next time I'd like to take the family.

Below is the old Trier City Gate built by ... the Romans. This was where I had dinner.

This was on the drive home. The Germans seem to be going for wind power and the wind mills made for some dramatic scenery at sunset.

My rental was fun to drive. It was a Peugot. It looked like a go-cart, turned like a go-cart, accelerated and stopped like a go-cart... must be a go-cart. But I'd never driven a go-cart that had such good acceleration above 80 mph. Even the go-carts in Germany are good when the speed limit changes to "No Limit".

Not so economical either. The go cart cost $66 to fill up.

That's all for now. I hope you all are well. Next week's trip won't be near as much fun.

Tim

Sporting a new look

Dora underwear on her head.

Giant bruise on her forehead.

Potty-training is going pretty well. Kate still does not tell me when she has to go, but if I put her on at the right times, we don't have accidents. We are not yet accident-free, but who is at this age?

Claire loves to say, "What is it?" She asks this question of everyone and everything.

Unpacking. Still a nightmare. But my friend Amie from Seattle came to visit over the weekend, so I had a good excuse to ignore the boxes stacked everywhere.

I bought sample cans of paints to test on various walls of the house. I painted patches on many, many walls, thinking I would just repaint over them with the white wall paint in the garage. Only problem is the white wall paint isn't white - it is the outside trim paint. Sweet. Do you know how many shades of white exist? Hint: it's a LOT.

Random stuff

We had poo today! Ooh, sorry to throw that one at you without warning, but Kate finally achieved this potty training milestone. We will see what tomorrow has in store. She rather enjoyed the coveted chocolate bar she got as the reward, although I am concerned that she will demand one every time in the future. Ah, well, better than diapers, right?

The girls got into my make-up today. There was a lot of lipstick, generally on the lips, and it was adorable. I would show you pictures, but Tim took the camera with him to Germany, and I have not yet figured out how to download pics from my phone.

Tim is TDY in Germany for five days. Who goes to Germany for five days? Or, two days, for that matter, as that's about how long he is actually going to be there.

The girls and I got to Skype with him tonight, which they thought was GREAT.

We are in the middle of a mild wind storm right now, which I love, but would love more if it included pounding rain and thunder. I miss the Arizona monsoons with a passion.

I also miss my Parents' Day Out program there. So So Much. There is nothing here like that! It's a tragedy. I did get us a membership today to the YMCA, which has free daycare while you are working out. It's a distant second. I mean, working out is great and all, but sometimes I just want to go have a coffee or go to the grocery store by myself! This will give me a great excuse to go work out, though, which I desperately need.

I had big plans to get tons of stuff done while Tim is gone, but am starting to realize that was probably a pipe dream. House maintenance takes Forever. But I did get 2 boxes of books unpacked today, which I considered to be a huge feat. Soon we will be left only with the Boxes That No One Wants To Open: files.

Claire is trying to jump. She has gotten close enough to doing it that she is slightly obsessed by it. But she can't quite figure it all out, so she runs really fast and then sort of leaps with one foot out in front.

Kate's new phrase: "my friend ___". Tonight it was, "...and then on Saturday my friend Daddy will come home and we'll eat yummy bresstess (breakfast)...". Also her friends: me, Claire, Starbuck, bunny and blanket.

Claire so wants to be like her big sister and sit on the potty. She tells me when she wants to sit down, but only once have we had luck. I have the feeling that this is a fleeting opportunity, but am unsure how to grab hold of it and never let go.

Day 4

We are potty training again. We have been potty training off and on for like 2 years now. Mostly off, by the way. I'm not that dedicated. But Kate is showing most of the 'signs' of being ready, so we are trying again. Also, I'm tired of changing diapers for 2 kids, and Kate is almost 3.

The first day was not so good. I think we had approximately 4 changes of underwear in a one hour period of time.

The second day was better, although we went to a First Friday event at Tim's squadron that afternoon, during which Kate wore a diaper.

Yesterday was also not so good. I questioned my ability to ascertain Kate's readiness, and my parenting skills in general. Kate spent the morning whining about how she didn't want to wear big girl underwear. Tim talked her down from the ledge (and me, as well, for that matter), and she ended up in undies for most of the day, with only one accident (I think). Yesterday afternoon I bought her some Dora and Tinkerbell underwear, which she loves. Bunny is wearing some Tink ones today, while Kate is sporting Dora. Another crowning achievement: Claire went pee on the potty yesterday for the first time. Oh, how wonderful it would be to have 2 children potty-trained this month! Ha.

My only major problem so far is that Kate will pee on the potty when I put her on it, but will not tell me when she has to go. When exactly is this skill acquired? Or, dear God, am I starting too soon? I HOPE NOT. Other minor problem: poo. But everyone says they have that problem, so I'm crossing that bridge when we have the pee part better mastered.

I re-ordered the book, Potty Power, which my friend Erika swears by, and am hopeful that when it shows up in my mailbox, we can use it as reinforcement. Until then, I will take any advice I can get.

*&#*% post office

I have a strong suspicion that all of our mail is not arriving at our new address. Actually, it's more than a strong suspicion: my grandma sent Tim a birthday card 3 times, and only on the third try (to the same address) was it delivered. And I just checked Amazon.com to see where the Potty Power book I ordered for Kate 3 weeks ago was...and guess what. It got returned to Amazon because of an incorrect address. Are you kidding me? It's not like Amazon hand wrote the address! So, I apologize to those of you who have sent things to us, only to receive them back undeliverable. The only thing I can say is that we are in North Las Vegas, not just Las Vegas. Even then, it's a crap shoot.

***

Update: we are now up to 4 known instances of missing postal material. I hope this will be the end of it, but if not, I'm sorry!

At wit's end

I'm not sure precisely where 'wit's end' is, but I believe it hovers somewhere between 'won't sleep past 6am', 'won't nap longer than 1.25 hours', and 'won't fall asleep before 9pm'. Kate is killing me. She is exhausted, but not to the point of actually sleeping. She is becoming increasingly bossy, and perhaps slightly more aggressive towards her sister. I have put dark curtains over her bedroom windows, but she is still up at the break of day, loudly whispering, "shhhhhhhhhhhh" in a way that wakes me and Claire up, if Claire has not already been awakened by Kate throwing things at her in her crib. There's nothing like a captive audience.

I am becoming evermore desperate, and even gave Kate benadryl before yesterday's nap in an effort to get her to sleep longer. Instead of sleeping for 1 hour and 10 minutes, she slept for 1 hour and 20 minutes.

We can't get our gate to work, but I may be willing to purchase a brand new one soon just to keep her in her room. Other ideas?

A girl and her powertools, posing a question

In an effort to avoid further unpacking any more boxes last night, I began adding decorative hardware to our kitchen cabinets. After drilling and drilling, and cursing a bit, I finished most of the cabinets. However, I have a question: do you add pulls to non-usable cabinetry? There are two "drawers" beneath both the cooktop and the kitchen sink, and I don't know whether to leave them free of pulls or add the hardware. Before I began the project, I thought for sure that I would add them to every surface that would accept them. After working for freakin forever what seemed like ages, I thought, "those drawers aren't really drawers, and therefore they don't need pulls". Also, it's going to be a right pain in the patooty to get pulls on those faux drawers, since you have to drill from the back and you (I) cannot open the "drawers".

So, do I need them? Does it look silly to have pulls on all drawers but the fake ones? Say it!

Purchased: one red bed

I called and ordered the red bed, even though Kate is now insisting that she absolutely must have the white one. So sorry, baby girl.

You all offered some very constructive comments about which one I should buy, and most importantly, you had no huge reasons why I should not buy the red one, which I secretly love. I am somewhat concerned about teaching Kate to make her own bed, but feel that she is a smart girl and we'll figure it out. Besides, she won't really be making her own bed for like 8 more years, right? AND, the red bed is SO SO SO Cute. Love.

One of THOSE afternoons

I decided to do a quick vacuum of Kate's room before getting my swimsuit on and taking the kids out to the pool. I wondered why the vacuum wasn't picking up much stuff, and surmised that the bag must be full. I opened up the canister to find that there was no bag in the vacuum. Apparently the movers will pack up your garbage, but will not transport semi-full vacuum bags. Greaaaat.

After using the little vacuum cleaner to clean up the big vacuum cleaner mess (all the while thinking how Monica-like this action was: 'She is obsessive to the point that she even cleans her cleaning supplies, using a dustbuster to remove dirt from a vacuum cleaner and wishing there were an even smaller vacuum to clean the dustbuster.'), I put my swimsuit on. It was too quiet in the house, however, and I knew that this silence would come back to haunt me.

Sure enough, Kate had opened a tube of lotion ("sunscreen"), and most of a toddler piano, various parts of the loft, 2 chairs, and 2 toddlers were partially covered in baby lotion. And it was not my favorite-scented one, either.

We are now on our way out to the pool, if for no other reason than to wash the dust and lotion off.

Bedroom sets: help!

It's time to transition Kate to a big bed. I have been looking forward to the time when we would buy her a new bed and bedroom set. Who doesn't love redecorating a kid's room? With new! furniture! (Here's where I thank all the family members who have given money for Kate's past birthdays.)

I think I have narrowed the choices down to two beds, but now I am stuck. I just asked Kate which one she likes better and first she said the white one and then the red one. No help whatsoever. She's two; what can I expect?

I like both, for different reasons. I love the red bed because I think it's stylish and classy, but not over-the-top. I like the white one because it has clean lines and has a canopy. I dislike the red one because it is red (which is also a reason why I like it. Confused much?) and I'm afraid she or I will tire of it. I'm also not sure what to get for other furniture in the room. I don't think I want (nor do they sell) an entire red bedroom set. Do you go with white or black or brown? Adding to my woes, the bed also comes in blue! But I like the red better, I think, so I won't even ask your opinion on that.

I dislike the white one because it is white (wow, do I have color issues or what?), and I grew up with white furniture. I loved it when I was 7, and hated hated HATED it when I was 13. But, did I hate the furniture, or hate the lack of change? I mean, I was 13. Realistically, I probably hated the pink frilly bedding and flowery wallpaper most of all, along with the fact that I was stuck in the same bedroom I had had since I was 4. Kate will not have this problem. See also: military move every 3-4 years. Putting the bedroom set in a different bedroom will do wonders, I'm sure.

I think the beds are about the same price, so that is not helping me make a decision.

With all that said, here are the beds. Please voice your opinion! I need help.

Running out of steam

Scowl.

Sharing cotton candy at the 4th of July picnic. We found blue stickiness on them for days.

Wheee! Claire is confused as to why she is unable to steer any direction but forward.

Coloring Daddy's birthday paper. "Are you sure Daddy will appreciate my hard work?"

On the menu: yogurt, hot dogs, oranges, and birthday cake. Better when all mixed together and shoveled into the mouth without utensils.

Unpacking whilst watching over toddlers is tiring. You unpack something and put it in a specific location so that you will know exactly where to look for it later, and then one child comes along and 'puts it away' for you. Days later, you find it, stuffed into a random box or under a bed. Also, there is just So Much To Do that I am at a bit of a loss sometimes. It sure is nice having a blank slate to start from, though, and twice the house to work with!

Can you tell what she is singing?

Finally, bandwidth enough to upload my new favorite clip:

I love this video. My favorite part is her pronunciation of the letter 'w'. Here, it is 'nuh-nuh-nuh-nu', but it has since gotten much longer and is now more like 'nuh-nuh-nuh-nuh-nuh-nuh-nuh-nuh-nu', followed by a grinning 'exxxsh'. LOVE IT.

A housewarming gift from Mary and Doug

They stripped the kitchen of all appliances. But they left us this parting gift. I didn't touch any of the bottles: they were splayed out like this when I opened the drawer.

Pretty sure

I'm fairly certain that this is not what you meant when you enthusiastically said that you wanted to see pictures of our stuff in our house:

All-righty then! Back to it!

Also, Tim should be home ANY MINUTE to allow me a child-free trip to Costco! I have a brand-new french-door refrigerator to fill up. I can hardly wait!

Glassware: good. Solid wood: not so good.

Every time we move and begin unpacking, I open each box with some trepidation. Will this be the box with my broken crystal stemware from my great-grandmother? We are nowhere near unpacked yet, but so far the glassware seems to be all in one piece. Oddly enough, it is the HARD WOODEN furniture that is not in the best shape.

The top of my desk is warped. So is the top of the armoire that houses the TV. It's like they put the truck through a steam bath. These are thick, solid pieces of wood. My saddest discovery so far: the step chest we got in Hanoi may be a total loss. I haven't even looked at it close-up yet -- I'm too sad that it is likely ruined.

I picked Starbuck up this morning -- he is confused and skeptical of his new surroundings. He does love the stairs, like the girls do, and has been racing up and down them.

We went swimming last night in our huge lap pool, thanks to all of Tim's hard work on it over the past week. The girls thought it was great to be back in the water. So did we, after a long day of moving in in 112* heat!

We have our cable set up now, and have half of our appliances. The refrigerator, dishwasher and microwave come this afternoon. Party!

Time to go unpack more boxes!

Moving day tomorrow

9500+ pounds of household goods, packed in a gazillion boxes, all delivered to our new house tomorrow morning. Also, a set of stainless steel wall ovens and a cooktop (we couldn't find stainless-look appliances that matched well enough. And there was a huge sale.) to arrive in the afternoon. Two toddlers who are sure to be underfoot at every moment. And two adults who will be working on approximately 4 hours of sleep.

No more TLF! No more cramped spaces! No more children going to sleep at 10pm because they are in the same room! Woot.