Category Archives: Treasures from the Archives

Books, Books, Books

Chloe finished her second Nancy Drew mystery today. It was her last day to log books for her school’s 100 book challenge

She was a little upset this morning, because she’s afraid that even after receiving credit for the Nancy Drew tome (to the tune of one point for two chapters), she won’t make it to 100.

After a stellar school year (she got 100% on her last spelling test and her year-end math test), she was beating herself up over the number of books she’d read over the last nine months. And not just any books – complicated chapter books.

I told her she should be proud of herself for all she had accomplished – and the tears quickly dried up. But I still have this lingering feeling that she puts too much pressure on herself; or perhaps, more likely, that we (and mostly I) unintentionally put too much pressure on her. It’s something I’m going to have to monitor closely. I wouldn’t want my girls growing up needing too much therapy once they reach their adult years…

More Silly Pet Tricks and Some Random Thoughts

I know – I need to take some new photos. But here’s yet another example of our kids’ silliness. I continue to be amazed by the energy Chloe and Sophie display minutes before bedtime. Funny how that happens.

The girls had another fun-filled day. Sophie had a “date” with her little friend who is a boy (note the determined resistance to using the word ‘boyfriend’), and after an abbreviated school day because of excessive heat, the girls and our babysitter went to the swim club.

Every time we go to the swim club (and we’ve used it five times so far), I rejoice in how much less it’s costing us per day as we increase the frequency of our visits. And we’re only at the beginning of June. And it’s not even officially summer yet. I hesitate to get too excited at the thought that this might have actually been a wise investment. But so far, so good.

We had a crazy rain storm a little earlier tonight. The lightning was directly overhead for about an hour, and we actually noticed a small leak in our sunroom (yet another unplanned expense – just great). I kept thinking of all the trees that haven’t yet fallen on our house.

Father’s Day is approaching, and of course, I am without many ideas. My husband is talking about an iPod. We’ll see. I’m not convinced he’d actually use it, but then again, I suppose I should accord him the benefit of the doubt. He’s a very difficult person to shop for – because either he doesn’t have any ideas of his own, or the ideas he has are simply cockamamie.

I’m tired, it’s late and it’s way past my bedtime. A demain.

Chloe, the Budding Writer

Chloe had her end-of-year writing exam today. The kids had to write a story around a picture. Chloe was inspired by an illustration of two kids camping.

As I asked her what her story was about, I figured there’d be a lot of scary animals and ghost stories. The first surprise came when she told us her story was 18 pages long!

The second surprise came when she started to recount her plot. The boys went through a magic hole in the tent, created by a thunderbolt sent down from the heavens by Zeus.

Yep – the two kids, Jake and Daffy, went on a visit to Mount Olympus. Where they encountered Apollo, Hera, Ares, et al. And went to war, which the gods didn’t mind because they knew they couldn’t die. Anyway, the story was fairly involved. And she brought it back full circle – with the boys agreeing to return to Olympus every two weeks to visit their new friends, and going home to their parents to tell them about their incredible adventures.

I felt very proud as Chloe told her story. And it just goes to show that reading with your children does make a difference. When I think she’s not listening, she usually is – at least with one ear.

also got 100% on her last math and spelling tests. A terrific way to end the school year – go, Chloe!

Moody Sophie


Sophie is in a little toddler funk. For the past week or so, I’ve noticed a distinct change in her moods. She’s generally an extremely happy little kid, so when she starts throwing at least one temper tantrum a day, it gets me wondering.

Why? Why? Why? Is it because she’s starting to realize that the window on the terrible two annum horribilis is closing on her – that she has only about three months left before she can’t use that as an excuse for misbehaving?

Truth be told, Chloe never went through the terrible twos. But she was a nightmare between 3 and 4. Sophie has consistently been slightly ahead of Chloe in her milestones, so perhaps we’re starting to witness a preview of Sophie’s nightmare threes.

All I know is that she has one hell of a voice on her. The other day, she tortured my babysitter on the 20-minute walk home from the park. Screaming her head off the entire time, causing our beloved caretaker to quake in fear that someone would attribute the shrieking to wrongdoing on her part and call the police.

Today’s meltdown at the swimclub occurred because she wanted a bag of Swedish fish candy, just like Chloe. That simply wasn’t going to happen. All of the other parents of young children were visibly happy (the grinning gave them away) that, for once, the cause for embarrassment wasn’t their own progeniture.

Silly Pet Tricks


OK – we don’t have pets. But Chloe and Sophie are much more interesting than pets. And they do silly pet tricks, too.

Like the one depicted in the action shot to the left. Chloe put herself into mortal danger by lying on the floor to allow Sophie to jump over her. Sophie took on the challenge with gusto, of course.

With my fists clenched to my sides (actually, that’s not really true – I was holding the camera, praying I’d capture a leap that didn’t lead to a hospital visit), I witnessed the jump. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again – Sophie is an athlete waiting to happen.

The jump was graceful and successfully executed. Both girls had grins on their faces. And they repeated the stunt several more times before bed.

The Whistler

There was a time when I really encouraged Chloe to try whistling. Being the perfectionist that she is (wonder from whom she inherited that trait?) she practiced and practiced until the first chirping sounds came out of her mouth – about two years ago.

Once she mastered the art, she didn’t whistle so much for awhile. Until about a week ago. When she rediscovered her hard-earned talent. Ever since, I’ve wanted to tape her mouth shut.

She doesn’t stop. She whistles everywhere. And at extremely inopportune times. Like when I’m talking to someone, either in person or on the phone. Or when I’m trying to discipline her…about whistling! The worst part of the whistling, however, isn’t so much the timing of it. It’s the tone. It’s this horrible high-pitched warbling that’s fit for a dog but not a human being.

While at dinner tonight, Chloe was trying to play “Name That Tune” with us. It was painful. First, it was “Frere Jacques,” which I understandably confused with “Where is Thumbkin?” Then it was a completely unrecognizable version of “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star.”

We were saved from further eardrum-bursting squealing by the waitress, who came at just the right moment to take our order. Her propitious timing was about the only thing she did right during the meal, but her getting Chloe to shut up was more than enough to guarantee her a 20% tip.

Headflips

Chloe tried to be a gymnast once. We took her to class a couple of years ago and it lasted a few months. But she never really took to it.

I was glad about that. Because it was a hassle to get to the gym, and it was crazy crowded there on Saturday mornings. There were lots of serious athletes at this place, with the stereotypical stage parents behaving badly. That was actually kind of fun to watch.

But every once in awhile, Chloe decides she’s going to try to do a headstand. She must have been feeling very inspired last night, because she put on her old leotard, which is now two sizes too small, perhaps hoping that it would provide some good luck.

She used the wall as an aid, although it didn’t really help. She mostly did headflips. Only once did she manage to keep her legs in the air for a couple of seconds, and they were flailing. But at least she tried.

Luckily, Chloe is fairly self-aware. She’d probably be the first to admit that she and gymnastics don’t really mix. And she’s ok with that. Eventually she’ll master the headstand. Or maybe not. And if I’m being honest, Sophie does a better somersault than her older sister. But that’s ok. Because Chloe is a swimmer – the swimming little engine that could.

Somersault!

I’ve mentioned in previous posts that Sophie has become a pro at somersaults. But some of you may be doubters. This video should quell any skepticism.

Meet Sophie, a future member of the 2020 U.S. (or French) Olympic Gymnastics team. I suppose if we were good parents, we’d start fostering this innate talent. I don’t know, though. She really isn’t a team player. And furthermore, she refuses to follow instructions.

Chloe caught my husband and me smooching before. Her reaction: “OK, that’s just too disgusting.” As much as she sometimes likes to act like she’s six years older than she really is, a comment like that reassures me to no end – that the seven-year old inside hasn’t been entirely usurped.

It’s Official, I Think

After several weeks of diaperless Sophie – and only one accident – we decided to forego the diaper at nighttime as well. And so far, so good. She’s now at the point where she asks to go to the bathroom.

Good job, Sophie! And to think that we actually met the self-imposed deadline of the swim club opening…I must hand it to her – our little one is definitely a keeper.

She’s also developed into quite the dancer. She’s quickly progressed from the shake the booty stage to the shake the booty and arms and head and legs stage.

And she’s counting to ten. Usually in a sing-song voice, and with a big smile. She’s also starting to fight back when her sister bothers her. Becoming more assertive, more like a 3-year old. Even though she’s four months shy of three.

She’s still not a team player. She displays very little interest in group activities. Even tonight, among her family and our babysitter, she didn’t want to join in a game of catch. She was content to do somersaults, dance and jump on the bed. And when Chloe gently invited her to play, she was adamant in her refusal to toss the ball. Which wasn’t necessarily a bad thing – since she has a really strong arm and could have bonked us on the heads multiple times.

Biking in Harmony

We had a very active day today. We spent most of afternoon at the swim club, where Chloe played with two of her classmates for a good several hours. In the water. Which was slightly less frigid than last weekend, but still not nearly warm enough for my husband and me to seriously consider getting more than our toes wet.

Sophie and her Papa joined us later in the afternoon – after she had her daily beauty rest. She also enjoyed the pool, but she particularly enjoyed squeezing the cold water on my back and in my hair. Chloe actually dove off of the diving boards – or at least attempted to. She quickly realized that a successful dive from the side of the pool doesn’t necessarily translate into a successful dive off the board. But that didn’t stop her from trying.

After we came home and bathed the girls, the four of us rode our bikes to the local Mexican joint for dinner. Sophie rode on the back of my husband’s bike, and seems to have accepted the fact that in order to join us she would need to wear her helmet. She enjoyed the ride, and I enjoyed riding my new two-wheeler again.

So – it was a Sunday of activity. A beautiful almost-summer day. The girls got their exercise, and Chloe didn’t once ask me what we were going to do next. I’m really loving that swim club. Even with the freezing water.