Where is everyone?

Now that she is really talking, it has become very evident to me what a challenge my/our crazy schedule poses for Adelaide. She clearly prefers to have everyone home together, or even better, to go out on adventures together. On the flip side, she has a constant level of concern about which of us might leave at any moment. Multiple times every day, especially on weekends, she askes "Mom go?" and shakes her head, "home" ... "Dad home? Go? Ada go?" We review who is staying home and who is "going" and whether they are going to work (us) or to school (her). If anything changes, especially if anyone puts on shoes or changes clothes, we go through it again, "Dad go?" (shaking head), "home"; "Ada?". I've been working lots of night shifts, so her evening time radar is high. If I get up from the dinner table without warning, she says, "Mom work? No. Home." It must be so confusing for her that every day is different, without a pattern. She gets picked up and dropped off by 3 different people, at different times every day, by bike trailer if I take her and otherwise by car, and I can see her little brain trying to so hard to make sense of the pattern, to find regularity in the chaos. Welcome to my life, Adelaide, the only consistency is inconsistency! It won't be too long until she can read a calendar, and then we'll have to get her one of her own so she can keep tabs on who goes where and when. Until then, we'll just keep up the dialogue. Dad home. Ada home. Mom go.

still an eater!

It's been a good food month. This weekend, to celebrate Grandma's birthday, we went to a fancy seafood buffet on the waterfront. Kids eat free, although they are reconsidering that policy after Adelaide put on her show. She bypassed the "kid's table" (jello and french toast sticks - who needs that??) and literally ate her weight in fresh shrimp and Dungeness crab meat. Of course she had a fair sampling of mussels, lox with capers, and the cheese and fruit platter. You just can't be picky when there's so much variety! She charmed all the servers with a huge grin as she patiently ate and ate ... and ate for 2 hours straight! No wonder her belly is so huge! But Ada is learning that you get your food fastest if you peel it yourself. Here she is, looking proud after learning how to peel her first orange. This of course can be a mixed blessing when she climbs up to the counter and peels all of the oranges in sight. Fortunately, she's been willing to share the goods.

we love school!

We went to our first "parent-teacher conferences" this past week. I had no idea that toddlers get conferences, but why not!?! Adelaide is thriving in school, making friends, keeping up with her tasks, learning the patterns of the day. But no surprise to us; she brings her lessons home and applies them to life at our house. Yesterday I gave her a new ("new-new" as Ada would say) puzzle game with multiple puzzle boards and colored shapes to fill them in. She took it off the shelf, set out the pieces and delicately figured out how to set them in the correct places, and when she was done packed it all away, color coding the pieces into their respective sections, and put the box back on the shelf where she got it. Not to say that I never have to clean up after her (far from it!), but I'm amazed that a 19-month old can understand that every project has it's place, and it has to be put away when completed. I take no credit for her precociousness; Montessori is amazing. Turns out that when you teach kids to respect their items, they do!! Who knew?!? (Now how do I teach this lesson to my husband?)

language explosion!

This has been the month of language development. Adelaide's vocabulary has more than quadrupled in the past few weeks. As you'd expect, her favorite topic is food; she names most of her favorite snacks, and frequently asks to go to Costco! We're not sure if she finally decided she was ready to talk, or if she's been inspired by her classmates. (She's fully settled into the school routine now and loves to get going on school mornings.) When we pick her up from school, she introduces us to her new friends. She likes to clarify who gets to "go" along whenever we get ready to leave (and who has to stay home). And cutest of all, she sings along with her favorite songs. All those months of intense listening are finally paying off!

little school girl

Joe's first week of the new school year involved one very demanding little student. Adelaide started at Cedar Montessori school, and it's been a tough transition for her. Although her former nanny is in charge of Adelaide's classroom, there are several other teachers to get acquainted with. The first week was a bit rocky, both at school and at home, but the teachers were really patient with her, and she's adjusting quickly. Montessori is more regulated than most places, but we've incorporated some Montessori practices at home to get her ready. She loves her pink lunch box, and she's made friends with one little boy, so we are confident that week 2 will be much more fun (for all 3 of us!).

end of summer

How appropriate that it is cold and rainy for Labor Day weekend: the summer is over!! If Adelaide understood that "Dad time" was ends today, I'm sure she'd be sad. From weekly trips to the zoo and OMSI, swimming lessons, and building a 48-ft retaining wall, they had an busy summer. We managed to get in quite a few picnics, trips to the coast, hikes, bike trips, and her first train ride. Never as much adventure as her parents would like, but she should have plenty of material for her "what I did this summer" essay! Though we're sad that summer is over, we're ready to settle in to the back-to-school routine.

summer freedom!

After several weeks of being diaper-free at home, we finally took the plunge: All three of us wore "undies" all weekend: up a Gorge hike to a picnic at the overlook, to the zoo, through a 17-mile run, and on a shopping trip. No diapers, and no mess!! We've officially become "those people" pulling out the little pink potty by the side of the road (and even more often on the trail), in parking lots, at the drinking fountain ... you name it. The potty-on-the-go may be questionably sanitary, but it makes all three of us (and our washing machine) happy to have potty-independence!!