No, really, we're still here

 

Did you feel like we'd run out on you?

We haven't, I promise.

We've just been too busy relaxing to spend time blogging.

Actually, that's not true.  In fact,  it couldn't be further from the truth!  Okay, it's a little bit true and a little bit not true.

The past few weeks have been jam-packed for us.  Aside from Madeline's surgery, here's some of what's been going on here lately:

• Daddy studied for and then took his second comprehensive exam.  (He took and passed his first this fall.)  Once we confirm that he has passed, he will become a candidate.  For a PhD.  (Not, hopefully,  the kind of candidate that gets chased around by a smoke monster.  That would stink.) 
• Nan and Grandpa came to stay with us for a few days while I was under the weather.  They read stories, played cards, helped with dress-up, and got their workout for the year, hauling Indy up and down the stairs and in and out of his crib and pack 'n play.  They did great work!
• We joined Nan, Grandpa, and all the aunts, uncles, and cousins, for a weekend at a gorgeous beach house in Stinson Beach to celebrate Nan and Grandpa's upcoming 40th wedding anniversary.

The house, as you can see, was quite lovely. And since that doesn't impress children, it had some amenities for them, too.  

An amazing playhouse....

an a similarly amazing swingset.
  There will be more about that weekend, I assure you. I'm still wading through the photos.
• We celebrated Daddy's birthday in grand style. The kids and their cousins joined us for cake (that got just a touch overdone in the beach house's convection oven -- whoops!) and some delicious strawberry frozen yogurt.
  
  
  
  Then, when the littles were all tucked away, Daddy got to relax in front of the fire pit, with a cigar and a beer, while the sun set over the pacific ocean. Not a bad way to end your birthday. (My parents joked, "Yeah, but he had to spend the day with his in-laws!" )

• And, once home, we celebrated our eighth anniversary. It's no fortieth anniverary, but we were happy to celebrate it nonetheless. We've packed a lot of moving, a lot of adventure, a lot of challenge and a lot of happiness into eight years. We wouldn't have spent those years any other way!

And that's why we've been away. We'll be back, though. We promise.

Madeline's "special day" at the hospital

On Monday our sweet Maddie Beth went to the children's hospital at Stanford for surgery.  Madeline, as you may or may not know, has never been our best sleeper.  It has not been uncommon for her to wake at night and need consoling to go back to sleep.  She also snores, poor thing.  We'd become concerned that her snoring might actually be interfering with her ability to breathe (and to sleep), and so we'd taken her for a consult with an ear-nose-throat specialist.  He informed us that, though Madeline's tonsils were quite small, her adenoids were rather large, and that they could, in fact, be making it difficult for her to breathe at night.  Additionally, the size of her adenoids made it hard for her ears to drain properly.  The two times we saw the surgeon before the surgery, Madeline's ears were full of fluid.  Though she's never had many ear infections, we have at times been concerned about Madeline's hearing and -- more recently -- her speech.  (She's got ridiculous language skills, but her enunciation is really unclear.)  Once I got over my decidedly anti-surgery stance, we agreed that it would be in Madeline's best interest to remove her adenoids.  While the doctor was removing her adenoids, he'd evaluate the fluid in her ears and possibly insert tubes, to help with the drainage.

We'd read a number of books about hospitals and doctors to prepare for the big event, and we talked it up to Maddie as her "special day" at the hospital.  (I'm sure that at some point, we'll have to have a talk about truth in advertising, but when dealing with a dramatic two year old, you've got to sort of gloss over the "it could hurt" part.  At least, we've had to.)  She was quite excited, mostly about the treats (ice cream and popsicles) and surprises (new coloring books, a copy of Disney's Robin Hood) we'd lined up to make the day go more smoothly.  Nan and Grandpa, who'd come in the night before to stay with Madeline and John David, were the icing on the cake.  They presented Madeline with two new sets of pajamas when they arrived -- one for her,  and one for her dolly. They also promised yet another present when Madeline returned,  a promise Madeline did not forget!

We had to be at the hospital at seven that morning, and we waited with all the other families in the surgical waiting room.  While we were there, we spoke with a woman who had come from Georgia and was staying at the Ronald McDonald House so that her little girl (who looked about John David's age) could have surgery.  We were reminded how lucky we are that our little girl is well and having such minor surgery, and how lucky we are that she can be treated at a renowned hospital, one that's a short drive from our home.  Focusing on being grateful helped me from panicking about the fact that my baby would shortly be under general anesthesia.

After a short wait, we were escorted to an exam room, where a kind nurse took Madeline's vitals and reviewed her history (and double checked that she hadn't eaten since midnight) and outfitted her with hospital bracelets.  She left us a set of hospital pajamas for Madeline to put on.  Madeline balked at first, telling us she wanted to wear her own clothes.  But we reminded her that her baby doll was wearing new pajamas and that everyone in her books had worn special hospital pajamas.  She was persuaded.

We moved from the exam room to a curtained off area where we met Madeline's anesthesiologists, who were very kind.  We also spoke with Madeline's surgeon and the resident who works with him, reviewing the details of the short (30 minute) procedure.  A kind gentleman brought Madeline a warm blanket and showed us the television that was directly above her bed.  He turned it to PBS for us, just as Curious George began. Madeline was transfixed.

The anesthesiologists gave her a sedative to drink to help keep her calm later, when they'd move her to the surgical floor, but Madeline really couldn't care about anything other than Curious George.

My very brave little girl, who just wants to be left alone to watch her friend George.

We stayed with Madeline as the anesthesiologists moved her to the unit where the surgery would take place.  She loved being wheeled through the hallways in her bed.  The doctors tried to talk to her, but Madeline was both shy and sedated.  When asked if she had a sister, and what her sister's name is, Madeline managed to stage whisper, "Sissy."  It was the only question she managed to answer, though she giggled when they rolled her bed into the elevator.

We were able to stay with Madeline until she was completely unconscious.  At that point her surgeon pointed us to toward the cafeteria, and instructed us to come back after we'd eaten some breakfast.  Noting my teary eyes, he reassured me that the mothers always cry, but that he and his staff would take good care of my baby.

They did.

As it turned out, Madeline's ears were completely clear, so they didn't insert any tubes.  They did take out her adenoids.  We returned from breakfast with plenty of time to wait around, and then to watch as Madeline began to awaken.  Once she stirred, I was able to hold her until she woke more completely.

Almost as soon as her eyes were open, the nurse offered her  a popsicle, which Madeline gladly accepted.  As it turned out, though, she wanted the popsicle more than she wanted to stay awake.  She managed a bite and then was falling asleep before she could get it back to her mouth again.

Once Madeline finished her popsicle and it was clear that she wasn't going to be sick, the nurses removed her iv and told us we could take her home.  As we carried our still drowsy girl through the hospital, she picked up her head and mumbled, "I go home.  Nan has 'nother surprise for me."  And then she  promptly fell back asleep.

When we got home, Madeline got her " 'nother surprise," along with more popsicles and ice cream and juice. She's watched a lot of movies and read a lot of books, recovering this week.  Soon, though, she'll be completely healed.

We're so proud of you, Madeline!  You were such a good, brave girl during your special day at the hospital.

Another day at the circus

Here you go:  just another day at the circus.

We started the day with a doctor's appointment for Madeline, but returned fairly early in the morning.  Early enough, anyway, for a bit of a pre-lunch swim.  I'd thought we'd hold off until after lunch, but Kathleen couldn't wait.

Kathleen's delighted to be in the water.  John David just wants lunch.  

(Yeah, he's munching on a wood chip.)

John David is enamored of the little pool.  He beelines for it as soon as he's out the backdoor. He applauds while he watches the girls slide and splash.  And he loves to lean over and play in the water.  He's also been known to then slide on his belly and walk his hands forward until he actually lands in the pool.  It's going to be a busy summer.

Madeline had her own ideas about the best way to play in the water.  Rain boots and a swimsuit.  The girl has her own sense of style, that's for sure.

Ta-dah!

John David is walking more and more, but when he's in a hurry (like whenever he's trying to keep up with the girls), he prefers to crawl.  He doesn't much like crawling in shorts, though, so he's begun bear-crawling instead.  He cracks me up.

On the prowl.

After lunch and naps, we headed back into the backyard for more fun -- just not of the water-y variety.  The girls decided to paint, instead.

Notice that Madeline has lost the swimsuit but kept the boots.  With her Cinderella dress.

John David found the paint fascinating and just as irresistible as the pool.  But since paint's a bit fussier than water, he needed some containing.

A deceptively peaceful photograph.

This photo pretty much captures his opinion about being confined to the pack 'n play.  Fortunately for you, there's no sound.  Because he was loud in his displeasure.  We've been working on training him to play happily in the pack 'n play.  So far he stays in it (very much against his will), but he neither plays nor seems happy.  Poor kid.  Life is tough.

Somehow, the girls were able to tune out his wailing.  They worked away on their masterpieces in the afternoon sunshine.  (I folded laundry while I'd cheerily call out, "You're just fine.  You've got lots of toys!"  And hoped that the neighbors weren't calling child protective services about the wailing.)

A monochromatic masterpiece.

Love the paint in the hair!

And before we knew it, we were cleaning up paint, rolling the pack 'n play back to the living room and calling it a day.  Dinner and baths and stories and multiple potty trips later, the littles are all asleep.  And we're not far behind them!

the birthday boy

See this sweet boy?

This sweet, sweet (loud, messy, busy, wonderful) boy?  This boy who -- in just the last week -- figured out how to walk?

He's the birthday boy.  And he's one year old.

It's almost impossible to believe that a little more than one year ago our girls had no brother and we had no son.  It's just as hard to believe that it's already been an entire year... that our tiny baby is now a (not at all tiny) one-year-old boy!

We celebrated John David's birthday (on his actual birthday) with our small group from church, at one of our regular meetings.  It was the perfect celebration -- lots of children, lots of chaos, lots of joy.  (That works well because our extremely loud boy sort of blends in.  And let me assure you -- he's loud.)

He screeched impatiently in his high chair while we readied the cake.  (I think he thought we were just torturing him, strapping him down for no good reason.)  When we brought it out, he seemed a bit perplexed.

Of course, he could be thinking, "That cake is for me?  It doesn't seem very boyish!"  But when you're only one and can't speak, and your sisters have input into your cake-making, you have to consider it a success when there's no Tinkerbell on the cake.  (No lie, the girls thought John David would really like that.  We compromised with pastel sprinkles.  And frosting that wound up a little more aqua than blue.)

One of our sweet friends was our photographer.  She snapped this photo of us.  It makes me smile.  It's how I'd like you to think of us.

But to be honest, this photo (in all its un-edited, over-exposed glory) is much more representative of what it means to embrace this circus.  Kathleen lunged at her father for a spontaneous hug while I tried to prevent Madeline from putting her entire fist in the cake (turns out she was after the candle).  And Katie captured it on film, guaranteeing that I remember how it really was, and not merely how I think it ought to have been.

We managed to make it a whole year without introducing John David to cake.  (We caved and gave him ice cream over the weekend before his birthday.  He took to that like a duck to water.)  He looked tentatively at the cake for quite a while, but then palmed it and popped it in his mouth.  He loved every last crumb.  Well, at least the crumbs that didn't wind up on him.

You make us smile, Indiana-John David.  We love you and your loud, busy, messy ways.  You've brought us joy every day of the past year.  We can't wait to see all that you'll learn and how you'll grow in the next!

a first swim

So, we've had some lousy weather lately. I'm not sure any of you will believe that, given the pictures I've posted lately, but it's true. Really. Last week was cold and rainy, but the weekend was glorious. We attended two outdoor birthday parties over the weekend; the weather couldn't have been more perfect. It was sunny and warm and delightful. Almost as delightful as the little friends we were celebrating, anyway.

On Saturday afternoon we capitalized on the sunshine and (finally) dragged out the wading pool, much to Kathleen's delight. She'd been begging to go "swimming" for weeks! She raced out to the pool to oversee its filling. John David, ever curious, was right on her heels.

She was soaked in minutes. And she couldn't have been happier.

John David -- similarly soaked, thanks to his sister's "accidental" splashing -- was just as happy.

As is often the case immediately following naptime, Madeline took a little more time to warm up to the fun. She watched from a distance until she was ready to join her sister.

Eventually even Madeline couldn't resist the siren song of the wading pool and its slide.

The girls were a whirl of motion around the pool -- racing for the slide, splashing down into the water, and then racing for the slide yet again.

Madeline very much joined the fun!

It hasn't been quite warm enough for the pool again since then.  That hasn't stopped Kathleen from asking to go swimming.  Every day.  Even while it was raining on Monday and Tuesday and Wednesday.  We haven't mentioned it to her, but the weather forecast indicates that the skies will be clearing and the mercury rising.  I don't imagine there's anyway we'll be able to keep her from the water!

a new park!

Last Monday dawned bright and sunny, but the weather forecaster was predicting rain for the rest of the week. Grandpa O'Connor likes to say, "You've got to make hay while the sun shines." And we did just that!

After a few brief errands, we visited a great park in Palo Alto. (We'd been up that way for the errands, anyway.) I have to confess that with two parks in our neighborhood, I'm not very good about loading the kids into the minivan to take them to different parks. (We somehow find enough fun in our neighborhood and in our own small backyard.) The upside to my failing is that when we do go, it generates a lot of excitement!

Kathleen loved the spider-webby climbing structure.

Since our neighborhood parks have no swings, and because we've never found a good place to hang our toddler swing (we've no trees and no swing set), John David hasn't had much of a chance to try out a swing. In fact, this might have been his first try! He was sold.

Whee!

Happy boy!

The girls spent a fair amount of time on the "big kid" swings, too, but I didn't manage any photos of that, because I was too busy holding John David, pushing, and teaching the girls how to "pump."  (That wasn't very successful, if you were wondering.  But they tried!)  Madeline managed the "big kid" swings, but I think she secretly preferred the baby ones.

Glee.  Delight.  (How I love that girl!)

There was lots of sliding, too.

And yet another first for John David -- his first slide!  I let him go down the slide on Kathleen's lap.  Both of them loved it.  Kathleen felt so grown up, taking care of her baby brother.  John David just thought it was fun.

And because I took a photo of Kathleen with John David, Madeline insisted on a photo with "her baby," as well.  I didn't let them slide together; I just set them up on the bottom of the slide.  Madeline wasn't any the wiser, but John David knew he was missing out.

And in case you needed more proof that this is, in fact, a circus, consider the following photos:

Kathleen's working on her circus act -- elephant riding!

The sunny weather and green backdrop seemed to be crying out for a photo of all three littles, but this was the best -- no, really, the BEST -- we got.

We played until we absolutely had to go home for a late lunch and (much-needed) naps.  But when everyone awoke, we went back!  We packed a picnic supper and met Daddy after work, so the girls could show off their new skills.  We can't wait for summer and more park time!  (You'll certainly be seeing more of this park -- it has a water feature that will be turned on in a few months.  We'll be back!)

Oh, no! They inherited my fashion sense...

(Or the lack thereof!)

The girls recently decided that my closet is much more appealing than their own dress-up clothes.  They spent an entire afternoon traipsing around in my now-never-worn heels (or, as captured here, my old slippers from Hawaii), playing princesses in my old dresses.  Ready to be whisked away to a ball, they felt as beautiful as any heroine in any fairytale.  And they were.  But not because of my old dresses... just because of who they are.

Our Easter (at last!)

Some photos to share from Easter Day.  I can share them with you only because my sweet sister Caroline shared them with me... my camera was missing on Easter (still is missing, incidentally), much to my disappointment.  I'd thought about skipping an Easter post entirely, but then I read through our post from two years ago and discovered I'd totally forgotten that Madeline first crawled on Easter day.  Who knows what else I'll forget if I don't at least write it down...

Easter morning dawned cold and rainy, just as the weather forecasters had predicted.  We'd hoped otherwise, wanting to do an afternoon egg-hunt in the backyard, but it was not to be.  The girls came racing into our room as soon as they could (when the light on their little clock told them they could get up), cheering, "It's Easter!  It's Easter!"  The morning continued with Easter baskets, a hunt for some mini, foil-wrapped eggs around the house, and breakfast.  We made Resurrection Rolls again this year, an activity the girls seem to love.  Kathleen in particular loves to tell the story of the resurrection (she's been quite clear that it's her favorite part of the Bible), and she talked and talked about it as we made the rolls.  I realized she's not entirely clear on the symbolism of the rolls, though, as she explained them to her dad, "See, Daddy.  This marshmallow is Jesus, and we dip him in the butter and roll him in the sugar, and then we roll him up in this dough.  And we put it in the oven.  That's the tomb!  And then when we take the roll out, the marshmallow is gone!  Jesus does it."  Maybe next year, right?

After a truly lovely worship service, we came home to finish preparations and (for the littles, at least) to nap.  We hosted family and friends for dinner, for the second year in a row.  Much to the girls' delight, their best friend Audrey (and her parents, and her little sister, too!) were able to join us again.  (It makes me more than a bit sad to think that next year's the last year we'll be able to host these friends and family in this place.)  Between our girls, their two girl cousins, and Audrey, we had quite the gathering of little girls!

Grandpa read the girls Madeline's new book (and one of our favorites!) The Seven Silly Eaters.  I think the poor man had to read it three times before the afternoon was over.

Mama in an apron, with John David on her hip.  This is pretty typical, even if it's cliche.  In fact, the girls had to remind me to take off the apron on our way to church!

Fortunately for us, the girls decided to play upstairs early in the afternoon.  We enlisted all the adults to hide plastic eggs while Caroline made sure none of the girls came downstairs too early.  It was a good thing, too, because they couldn't wait to come downstairs.  Caroline captured just a bit of the girls' excitement on film!

And then, the hunt was ON!  The girls raced around the house, seeking and finding lots and lots of eggs.  We laughed and laughed about the way the three girls insisted on searching together.

Madeline was more than happy to show off her sugary loot to her daddy and brother...

John David tried to crawl around and gather eggs, too, but we had to put an end to that when we discovered that not only could he find the eggs, he could pry them open!  Maybe we'll let you try some candy next year, sweet boy.  Just not yet.

We ate and ate and talked and talked.  We savored every bit of our Easter.  We hope you did, too.