Tooth Fairy

We are excited to have another fairy visiting our house these days.  This time it's the beloved Tooth Fairy!  Hannah lost her first tooth a few weeks ago, another milestone.  Tonight while she was jumping on her bed (something that isn't allowed of course, making it so much more fun!), she stumbled and bumped her lip against her knee.  Next thing you know, her tooth is hanging, literally by a thread.  She hurried to the bathroom, where she peered into the mirror and pulled her tooth out.  She was a little concerned about the amount of blood but once that stopped she was okay.  

She wanted to 'brush' her tooth one last time to be sure it was nice and shiny for the Tooth Fairy.  She also decided to rinse it under water.  OOPS!  Down the drain it fell.  Her big blue eyes filled with tears immediately, she was so very upset about not having her tooth for the Tooth Fairy.  Michael started taking the pipe apart, immediately, while I took Hannah aside to explain that if we didn't find it, I was certain the Tooth Fairy would understand and we would write her a note explaining what happened.  

Alas,  Super Hero Daddy came around the corner, tooth in hand!  Hannah was so many things at once; happy, excited, relieved and crying.  phew!  What an exciting night. 

Camping

We took our first camping trip of the season and had an absolute blast!  There is a wonderful place in Jefferson, NH called The Lantern Resort (thelanternresort.com) that offers motel and campground 
accommodations.  We are a tenting family for the time being, though someday we hope to graduate to a 'pop-up' camper.  This place was luxurious in the world of camping.  First of all, we had our own water source AND electricity panel.  Typically for camping, there are several if not dozens of sites sharing a water source strategically placed in a communal point for all sites to reach.  If this weren't enough, there was a brand new bathroom with hot showers, for FREE!  And a heated pool, playground, petting zoo and nature trails on site.  And most importantly, it is right across the street from Santa's Village!  

I hope you if you ever decide to camp and visit Santa's Village, you will consider this resort, it really was so great with the amenities.  And I almost forgot, they have a sleepy time hay ride every night along with games in the pavillion.  And they have Miss Sleepytime available to visit your camp site (or motel room) to read bedtime stories!  This place was sooooo family oriented it was a breeze.  It also allowed for some great freedom for the kids to roam and explore all in a safe environment.  

As always, we really enjoyed our time at Santa's Village.  This was our third visit and every year we are impressed with the cleanliness of the park and friendliness of the staff.  The kids have a ball and it is so reasonably priced.  We find this place to be of nice size in terms of amusement parks.  It is small enough to be able to complete everything in one day and not wait in lines.  yet it is big enough to explore and be in awe over, without feeling overwhelmed by too many rides and people. 

Special thanks to The Keefe Family for sharing our camping weekend.  We love you guys!

Kindergarten Graduation

This blog has been sorely lacking, I do apologize.  Life has been ridiculous these last several months and I am determined to revive this blog!  So I thought it very fitting, since our last entry was of Hannah on her first day of Kindergarten, to post a photo of Hannah at Kindergarten graduation.

Smiling pretty with Auntie Daria!

Hannah and Mommy

Our Kindergarten graduate looking 

soooo grown up in this photo!

Daddy and Hannah

Hannah alongside her Kindergarten Teacher sharing Hannah's dream to be an artist when she grows up!

Hannah with some of her classmates during their show.

First Day of Kindergarten

We can hardly believe it, but Hannah started Kindergarten!  Seems like yesterday we were just bringing her home from the hospital!  Congratulations, Hannah, we're so proud of you!

Conversations with a 3 year old

Parker is our funny guy.  He loves to laugh.  He loves to be tickled.  He loves to run.  He loves to ask why.   He also loves to be the backseat driver!  

A few months ago, Parker became fascinated with 'STOP' signs.  Any time we drove by, near or upon a STOP sign, he would scream at the top of his lungs, "MOM!  STOP!".  And if you ask him what he wants to be for Halloween?  You guessed it... A STOP sign!

Conversation #1

The Setting:  Driving Hannah to school, still in my pajamas, still half sleeping, sipping tea and answering Parker's never ending curiosities

Parker:  "Mom, Stop.  STOP, there's a STOP sign!"

Me:  "Oh, honey, that STOP sign isn't for us, it's for the other lane of traffic"

Parker:  "Why?"

Me:  "Because we are on the busier street so those cars have to stop and wait their turn".

We continue our drive and take our exit to Hannah's school.

Parker:  "Mom, STOP!  There's a red sign.  MOM!  You didn't STOP and it was a red sign!  Mom, you're supposed to STOP!".

Me:  "Parker, it's okay, that sign just has a little bit of red on it, and it was a triangle shape, it's called a YIELD sign, not a STOP sign.  So we don't actually have to STOP we just have to drive slow".

Parker:  "But it was red,  MOM!  Red means STOP!"

I don't actually remember what I said next, but it was quite a challenge trying to explain the different shaped signs having different rules.  

Conversation #2

The Setting:  Living room.  I'm on the couch trying to catch a quick nap after a rough night with Hannah, while Parker gets to watch a cartoon.  

Me:  "Okay, bubbie, let's watch a cartoon so Mommy can take a quick nap."

Parker:  "Okay, I want Curious George."

Me:  "I can't find any, honey.  How about The Backyardigans?"

Parker:  "Yeah!".

I am just about to nod off when Parker YELLS:

Parker:  "MOM!  I HAVE SOME BAD NEWS!"

Me:  Sitting up wide eyed with worry.  "What is it?"

Parker:  "I only like The Backyardigans now, not Curious George."

Me:  sighing with relief that it isn't anything terribly serious.  "Oh my, that is bad news."

Parker:  "Well, sometimes I still like Curious George."

Me:  "Well, that would be good news then!"

 

Conversations with a 5 year old

This summer, I was blown away with how 'grown up' Hannah became.  Her mannerisms and tone of voice were more adult like than I remembered.  It was only when we had the following conversations, that I realized just how 'intellectually' grown up she had become.

Conversation #1.

The Setting:  hiking in the woods on a beautiful summer afternoon.

Hannah:  "I wonder how this all started?"

Me:  "How what all started, honey?"

Hannah:  "You know, the trees, the sky, the Earth."

Me:  "Ohhhh."

Hannah:  "Like, who had the first baby?"

Me:  "Well, honey, there are lots of theories....."

Hannah:  "Theories?  You mean like the theories about dinosaurs?"

Me:  "Exactly!"

Hannah:  "Mom, did you know that turtles were alive when the dinosaurs lived?  They survived because the dinosaurs thought they were rocks!"  This is followed by a huge belly laugh, since that is probably the silliest thing, you know, that the dinosaurs didn't know they were turtles.

We did have a great conversation about how 'this all started'.  But it was awe inspiring watching her grasp such a philosophical thought.

Conversation #2.

The setting:  The beach, building sand castles and pools with water.  Parker is worried that we won't have enough water.  I assure him the ocean is large and we will have plenty of water.

Hannah:  "Mom?  Will the ocean ever run out?"

Me:  "Oh no, honey.  There's actually more ocean than there is land on Earth."

Hannah is quiet for a couple of minutes and then her thoughts are verbalized.

Hannah:  "So, what happens if there are too many people and we run out of land for everyone to live on?"

Me:  Completely shocked, I pick my jaw up from the sand and say "Yeah, it's a growing problem, actually."

WOW!  Aren't children just amazing?  It is a gift to be raising my two great kids.  And everyday I am grateful that I get to see the world through their eyes.  They are constantly teaching me things.  For example, these conversations?  A lesson, that Hannah is comprehending things I didn't think she was old enough to understand, let alone question and grasp.  

This just in from Boston....

We are ecstatic to report that Hannah is looking perfect!  

We met with her rheumatologist yesterday and he confirmed our feelings:  Hannah is looking just perfect.  In fact, he said, just looking at her, one wouldn't know she has JRA.  

We've been feeling like Hannah has been doing well all summer.  No illnesses, she's eating great, growing quite a bit (she's gained 3 pounds and grown 3/4 of an inch since June!) and her energy level is right up there with her peers.  

Her doctor informed us that we can start a plan to wean her off of the Enbrel (the stronger of the two meds) immediately.  So, instead of four injections per month, it'll be three injections per month.  Woo hoo!  Who knew that would be worth celebrating!  Keep your fingers crossed that her little body will continue to be healthy with less meds.