Reboot

Wow, it has been a long time. I don't believe I have ever had a hiatus like this.

Our time with our families in Utah and Idaho was wonderful, restful, and too brief. On Thanksgiving my parents came down and joined Justin's family for dinner. Having everyone around me like that was just about heaven. The girls had so much fun playing with their aunts--they remember everyone now, and know their way around their grandparents' homes right away. It was a little funny to see Cecily react to her great-grandparents. For the most part she was fine, but I realized that Cecily has had little to no exposure to senior citizens in the last six months. Our branch president and his wife are the oldest people at church (the place where she would be most likely to see older people), and they are recently retired. She never interacts with adults who are much older than Justin and me. I think the same process was going on when she saw her one-year-old cousin, Evelyn. Evelyn had a bone marrow transplant this past fall and is still unable to be out and about normally. We took the girls to play with her through the sliding glass door at her home several times. Gwen and Cecily would sing songs, make faces, and eat a snack. Evelyn needs food therapy so she can relearn a need and enjoyment of food. She has a feeding tube right now, but needs to learn that kids eat food. Watching her cousins was one way of showing her that adults aren't the only ones who use their mouths that way.

At the first visit Cecily was abruptly and uncharacteristically shy. Part of it might have been the abnormality of the situation, but I think it was mostly due to the fact that she really hasn't seen a child younger than 18 months since we moved. Evelyn is still very small and I think Cecily felt unsure around a person that size.

A few days after Thanksgiving Justin returned home to work and I went up to Rexburg. My sister, Suzanne, returned from an anthropological field study in India that week, and extending my trip a few days made it possible for me to see her. I love my family so much. It was wonderful to see everyone we could, and I am feeling more and more keenly the desire to be near more frequently.

***

Since we came back I have struggled to get back into my groove. My brain is increasingly muddled. It's probably due largely to pregnancy, but I really need to get it together before April. Speaking of which, I'll be 25 weeks in a couple of days. I think I'm bigger this time around than I was the last two, which is no surprise. I'm feeling pretty well, though I am having some twinges of sciatica like I did with Gwen. I am praying it will not get much worse, but am thankful every day for the activity and apparent health of our son.

I'm coping by cutting out some non-essentials right now. For example, our annual family newsletter will not happen until New Year's. I'm okay with that.

***

Gwen: "Mom, I think Muncie is kind of a Christmas cat. You know why he is kind of Christmasy? Parts of his fur are white, and Heavenly Father and Jesus' clothes are white. That's the same color!"

***

We are ready for Christmas. On Saturday some friends watched the girls for a couple of hours so Justin and I could finish our shopping. I was all set to sit back and relax for the rest of the week, but a series of events and half-formed good intentions have transformed into a major Christmas Eve dinner. We will be hosting more than 20 people from our church branch in our home, and I am glad to say that I have subsumed the initial panic and am looking forward to it. My to-do lists and I are in good spirits, especially since Justin doesn't have much to do at work this week.

Unfortunately the girls were throwing up all last night. They are much better today, and Gwen in particular has plenty of energy, but last night was awful. All the same, I'd rather they just got it over with together than dragging it out one at a time over a week, and I'm glad they'll be better for Christmas. Now if Justin and I can just dodge that bullet...

Merry Christmas, all. I hope you have a wonderful holiday.

Swashbuckling, berry-eating paleontologists.

You'd think that I'd blog more while on vacation, given that I have more down time, more noteworthy events in my day, and fewer requests/interruptions made by my children (surrounded by grandparents and aunts, their needs are oh-so-fulfilled).

And yet, I don't. I'm with the people I blog for most, and I'm usually more invested in the doing than in the recording. However, in an attempt to preempt some of the homecoming bustle I'll try to chronicle a little of our trip.

We are spending a couple of weeks in Utah and Idaho visiting our families. The girls were excellent on the flight to Salt Lake; they are really growing up. However, the brilliant idea of putting them in charge of their own carry-on backpacks was not so brilliant. Justin and I ended up carrying everything. But we didn't have to carry the kids, themselves, which was a nice first.

It was fun to watch the girls get right into their groove at Grandma and Grandpa Dyer's house. Gwen remembered where everything was and Cecily was not far behind. There was no "warming up" time needed.

No breakfast is complete without binging on Grandma's frozen blueberries.

Thanks to the new PBS show Dinosaur Train the girls are really into paleontology right now, so we headed up to the dinosaur museum at Thanksgiving Point.

Last Tuesday we went to a new pizza place by the University Mall called Pirate Island. It's all done up in a Pirates of the Caribbean vibe. Gwen and Cecily were moderately excited until an animatronic skeleton burst into swashbuckling life. Cecily lunged forward to get a better look. Gwen hit the deck. She curled into a ball on the floor and was jittery and uncomfortable the rest of the evening. In her defense, the skeleton pirate was timed to startle customs waiting to be seated, and bones really should lie still when they're dead. The restaurant was also very dark, and thunderstorm and sea battle sound effects played every few minutes. Every time she started to eat a bite something unsettled her. Cecily on the other hand, thought the whole thing was "silly" and enjoyed herself heartily.

The girl thought the best part of the night was the complimentary pirate hats and the balloon parrots made to sit on their shoulders. They had never seen balloon animals made before and I had to field about 200 questions before we exhausted the subject.

The was an arcade room in the restaurant. Most of the games were too broken or age inappropriate, but we found a few that were fun.

The aunts go marching.

The first week in November Justin's sister Alison came to visit for a few days. We loved having her come out, and the girls certainly took advantage; they put her through her paces and worked her hard. Alison is the "silliest" aunt in Gwen and Cecily's opinion, but to me she was helpful, relaxed company. Alison came bearing gifts: leotards, tutus, and fairy wands. That went over pretty well...

Ballerinazilla

We got lunch at the Barbecue House one day, toured campus, and just hung out and enjoyed each other.
Saturday was Homecoming for Auburn University so we took some time to go to a tailgate hosted by the College of Agriculture. We paid a few dollars admission and enjoyed free food and activities inside. There was face painting, a bounce house, and cotton for the kids to pick, gin, and learn about.

They take their outdoor sports seriously here. At the fishing activity there were veteran anglers on hand to tutor the kids.

A giant catfish wandering around posing with tailgaters? Yeah, they've got it.

"Speak the speech, I pray you... trippingly on the tongue."

Gwen is really exploring her vocabulary possibilities. She will ask the definition of a word, and then thinks about it and tries to immediately put it to use. I'm pretty impressed with the way she actively pursues a greater understanding of the language around her. It's also really, really funny. My mom reminisces about how entertaining it was to watch me speak as a little child. I was an early and prolific talker, and my mom says she was fascinated watching big words come out of such a little mouth. Now I understand what she means.

Gwen: "What does 'empathetic' mean?"

Aislin: "It means that you care about how other people feel, and you try to understand what they are feeling."

Gwen: "Well, Cecily isn't very empathetic."

Justin: "True, but you know, that doesn't come online until much later, developmentally."

***

Gwen: "Alison, what does 'destiny' mean?"

Alison: "Well, your destiny is something you're supposed to do in your life."

Gwen: "I guess it's my destiny to go to school."

***

A few nights ago Gwen asked Justin to bring her a drink of water when she was in bed. When he brought her the cup she said dreamily "I have an unusual drink obsession..." As Justin left the room she kept rolling the word around in her mouth: "Obsession. Obsession. Obsession."

Just don't ask me where she picked it up.

Other words we've explained in the last few days: nerd, epidermis, ambiguous, treacle, jittery, jealous.

Cecily also has a tongue in her head. It is hilarious to watch her baby lips move around words like "ornithomimus." "The ornithomimus was a fast runner," she will tell you in all seriousness. She'll ask me to cut a circle out of paper and explain "I need it for an investigation. Do you want to help me investigate this circle?" I think she has a pretty good contextual understanding of the definition, but what interests me is the way she navigates the noun-verb transformation.

Also on the topic of speaking, Justin took a shot at dealing with the name-calling we've been struggling with lately.

He taught a Family Home Evening lesson this last week on what words are good to have in our mouth. Taking a page from my parents book, he prepared some words on strips of paper, some of which are good words to say, and a few that belong in the garbage. He added his own spin by placing Smarties alongside each word. The good words (love, please, thank you) were associated with a plain Smartie. The garbage words (idiot, shut up, stupid, I hate you) were next to Smarties that Justin had topped with a paste made of garlic powder and water. I was hesitant about this bit, not wanting to give my children a life-long aversion to garlic, but it was Justin's lesson. The girls caught on to the gimmick right away. After each eating a good Smartie, demonstrating a word that was good to have in their mouths, when Justin asked if "idiot" was a word that would be good to put in their mouths they solemnly shook their heads and refused to taste the booby-trapped candy, and instead they helped to put the word and candy into the garbage where it belonged. I think Justin was a tiny bit disappointed but the lesson seemed to connect with them. We also discussed appropriate ways of speaking when you are upset. I think it's really important for kids to be empowered to voice their feelings, for good or ill. We talked about the way garbage words tend to come out when someone is feeling angry or frustrated, and what things are okay to say, like "Stop it," "I don't like that," and "I feel mad/sad/frustrated." Cecily will still call her sister a name from time to time, but the less desirable words are much less common, and when they do slip out, a reminder about garbage words helps them to understand their mistake and apologize. The girls also recognize when a word which wasn't on our list qualifies for the garbage word category. Cecily added "blockhead" to the list after watching a Charlie Brown show, and Gwen is aware of context and intent; she understands that being called a baby doesn't feel good if you aren't actually a baby.

Next Year's Must Have Accessory.

I have been wanting one of these for a long time. They've been around a while, but they don't really go out of style. I mean, look at it! It would take a certain amount of upkeep and we'd have to work out a few kinks, but I think it would be worth it.

Our ultrasound today revealed that contrary to prior trends, we are having a BOY. I would have been thrilled to welcome a third daughter to our family, but I admit that this news makes me giddy.

Justin kept whispering to himself "A boy. Really, a boy?" This picture is of him at about 2 years old. Since I was treated to his childhood photo albums a few dates into our relationship (not his idea, but not much of an option if you live at home) I have yearned to have a little boy just like him. If this kid is ANYTHING like his father he will be an amazing man. This kid will be himself, of course, not a little carbon copy of his dad. But I didn't know such little boys could exist until I met W. Justin Dyer.

Gwen was thrilled. She has been rooting for a boy since she figured that the only family member she didn't have was a brother. She wants a full collector's set. Cecily jumped on the celebration bandwagon since it looked like so much fun. (A couple of days ago she was eying me suspiciously and muttering that babies were too stinky, but she has a few months to resolve those issues. )

So he's got a brain, which is reassuring and useful.

And feet, which I'm sure he'll also put to good use.

But who IS this little fellow? I can't wait to meet him.

"Nothing but sincerity, as far as the eye can see!"

Possibly my favorite part of Halloween is getting to watch It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown. We own this precious little special, but it just isn't the same unless it's October.

Has there ever been a better, more illustrative plot device than Charlie Brown's trick or treat haul?

"I got a chocolate bar!"

"I got three cookies!"

"I got a package of gum!"

"...I got a rock."

It's the ultimate depiction of a kid who just can't get a break. And since children are gay and innocent and heartless, according to Mr. Barrie, my girls laugh a puzzled but hearty laugh whenever they see this situation unfold. And I laugh despite myself, relishing the efficacy of what Chuck Shultz wrote, and weep inside for that round-headed boy.

However, this might be an interesting tactic for discouraging teenage (too old) trick or treaters. Could I do it and avoid getting egged?

Our Halloween has felt very spread out, and we don't really have anything left to do tonight. (Justin and I will watch a Trevor Nunn production of Macbeth; Ian McKellen and Judi Dench in the leads--is 'yummy' the wrong sentiment?)

Gwen and Cecily both chose their costumes from several options in their size at a local consignment sale. I usually try to make all of our costumes, but pregnancy can take all the ambition out of a gal. And these were $5 each, which is hard to beat for such cute getup in like-new condition. I think the main deciding factor for both of these costumes was their color. We've been leading a pinkalicious life around here lately (through NO intent of mine, I assure you).

The french poodle ("Like a Fancy Nancy dog!") and the flamingo ("Yesyesyes! Pink!")

Last Saturday we attended a Trunk or Treat put on by the Auburn family ward. Justin and I went as the Paper Bag Princess and her fiancé, Prince Ronald. I was surprised how few people were familiar with the book, but I grew up in a household of rather assertive females, so maybe it was just more to the Powell tastes.

The girls played carnival games with great enthusiasm. It's fun that they are old enough to understand and enjoy this kind of thing.

Eating a doughnut without hands. Gwen really liked this one, since it fell nicely into her dog character.

So Halloween is on a Saturday this year--no better day for trick or treating, right? Wrong, if you live in SEC country. There was a home game today. Now, if you have a football game against Ole Miss and a major, ancient holiday, which comes first? The game, of course! So what do you do? Reschedule Halloween! All community holiday activities, including the legal, posted trick or treat hours for Auburn and Opelika, took place earlier in the week. Now, I'm enjoying this cultural phenomenon as much as the next observer, but don't you think this is taking it a trifle too far?

At any rate, Gwen and Cecily went trick or treating on Thursday. This is the first time they've gone door to door, and they had a great time. The weather was incredible. It was almost 80 degrees on Thursday. My kids were ringing doorbells without even a jacket. Gwen was sweltering and sweating by the time she got home. Never in my entire childhood trick-or-treating experience did I ever have a Halloween that didn't require a heavy jacket at least. (That is a terrible sentence. But I don't really want to bother reworking it at the moment. You know what I mean.)

Proud of our pumpkins.

We took it up a level this year with a Totoro-inspired pumpkin.

Picture Day.

I'm 17 weeks along now. This pregnancy has gone pretty quickly thus far (though I'm perfectly aware that time will slow exponentially in the coming months). We have an ultrasound scheduled for next Tuesday, and we're pretty eager to count appendages and learn this kid's gender, if possible.

Most of you probably know the boy-to-girl ratios in our extended families, but if you don't, I am the oldest of 5 daughters, and Justin has 6 sisters. Our two daughters have 10 aunts. (And 2 marvelous uncles; 8 more should come in time.) So the whole "boy" thing is a bit of a joke for us. It would be very interesting to see if we can produce a son. But I will be perfectly content with a third girl, too. I love my girls. And I love my sisters, and know what a marvelous time Gwen and Cecily will have in the future. The idea of having a boy feels nice and a little exciting, though it is very much the "other" for me. Either way, this child will be itself: not me, not Justin, not either of the big sisters-to-be. I'm pretty sure I felt the baby move a couple of times the last few days, so it's alive and kicking, at any rate. There is a poll to your right, if you're into that sort of thing.

It occurs to me that I sound rather off-hand in this post. I certainly don't mean to give the impression that I'm not excited or emotionally invested in the expansion of our family. Today has been a long day. I've caught a slight something that Gwen was nursing the other day and I have not been The World's Most Effective Mother today, on many levels. And when the selective hearing hits a certain point, I feel like I need to choose between raving like a madwoman (in the attic, if you like) and detaching a little bit to maintain the health and wellbeing of all concerned. I confess that I have done both today, and my children did not go to bed with hugs and kisses and a mother's tender love. A cranky lady informed them that if they couldn't do as she asked/stop talking/quit bothering each other/just go to sleep that she would start sequestering pieces of Halloween candy and put them in the garbage. And she meant it, too.

But enough of this. I also promised them that if we all tried a little harder to work together as a family, tomorrow would be a better day.