back to real life! And excited to be there

Boy was I so excited to see my kids again!  They were a lot less enthused than I was when I picked them up from the airport.  Can you blame them after being with Grandma so much?  I'm sure they feel like we all do after going on a cruise.  They know life can't always be that good, but missing it for sure.

When I saw them, I wanted to run up and give them hugs and kisses, which I did.  But no response.  Ok.  Fine.  W did finally tell me the next afternoon that she missed me the first night I was gone.  But she didn't say anything about the rest of the nights.

My mom took us all the way to the train part of the airport, which included an elevator ride.  E apparently has a deep seated fear of elevators that developed from this trip.  He screams as if something is biting him when he gets in them.  Same with the train.  Same with the airplane.  Even when we walk by the elevators in the airport and didn't

E got up here himself.  He was very impressed with himself.  So was I.

E is very intently studying the pics in this book.  I think he is also trying to read along

We got E minion socks.  He loves them.  He points to them and says minion.  We showed him the minion banana mini movie on You Tube.  Aunt H's influence lives on.  She showed this first to T and W

I am not particularly a huge fan of the dark and rain of winter.  However, I've finally come to realize there is nothing I can do about it.  So I have started to think of things I can look forward to doing just because it is dark and raining.  This is one of them.  Using our umbrellas.  They like to use their umbrellas. I rarely let them use umbrellas.  It is hoods or bust.  T invented a game where his frog umbrella was eating him

It's ok Mom!  Here is my cute face again!

get in them.  I'm guessing that it is because it triggers his last memories of what he was doing before Mommy left him in the car with Grandma without getting in.  Maybe that is why T is so afraid of toilets.  One time I left them with J for 5 days.  That was when J was potty training W.  Maybe all that toilet flushing reminds T of when he was left.  Who knows.  Only theories.

Anyway, when we all got in the elevator, E turned toward my mom for comfort.  W kept saying "Grandma, I mean Mom" for a day and T didn't really want any snuggles from me for about a day.  Slowly recovering.

W was such a huge help getting around the airport.  She pushed the stroller and her booster seat all the way back to the car.  It was a long way, but I couldn't have done it without her I couldn't balance the stroller or that last booster seat on the luggage cart back to the car.  Two suitcases, two carry on bags, three car seats, one stroller and one baby.  We went very slowly. 

W remembered our gate number and helped find it with T.  The plane wasn't there when we got to the gate, so we had a great time watching it park on the lines, the man directing it, the poop truck hooking up to the belly of the plane, the baggage truck and the food trucks.  All of the kids had lots of comments about it. The next day T used these ideas in his play by lifting a big box and moving it up and down like the food truck to dump in "food" (toys) into the "plane" (E's crib).  They had so much fun they dumped all the toys they could find in E's crib.  They only got to play that game once.

They did amazing on the plane ride back home.  They were telling me all sorts of stuff about their time with Grandma.  T was telling me about playing with Madison and how she is too big for him to pull in the wagon because it makes him go backwards.  W asked me about Thailand and wanted to hear stories from the trip.  She asked me if Papa taught me any words in Thai.  I taught them all 10 phrases I know to date.  Badly pronounced I'm sure, but they did remember the word for 5 and have incorporated it into play. The word is ha.  So T says "hahaha!  That means 555".  Yep.  They all fell asleep around 9:30 pm, but got up right on time the next day.

Fighting jet lag is an interesting experience.  It feels like I am in the very early stages of pregnancy for half the day.  I am exhausted and can't keep my eyes open if I am still for any length of time.  But only for part of the day.  For me it is from 3-9 pm, the time I was sleeping while in Bangkok.  And then there is the bit that, even if I force myself to stay up until 9 pm, I can't sleep past 2 am.  Whatever.  I have no idea how to make it stop sooner, but I think it will be like any other time change.  One week.  I am so exhausted and don't have energy and I also can't remember much or concentrate on any conversation of any intelligence during the afternoon.  Thank heavens I teach preschool in the mornings. 

The kids have said so many cute things and done so many cute things, but I can't remember them for the life of me.  Silly jet lag brain.  I have no idea how my husband is able to go to work and get anything done.

I have noticed that E is much better at pronouncing some words.  Like bath and more.  He also is better at showing laughter.  He laughs more animatedly at things, especially when he thinks he is being funny or silly.  He is continues to be good at clearly saying no.  He also clearly said bye to Mina and waved at her.

We got him a pull snake.  He thinks it is funny.  The first night he couldn't decide between his push vacuum and his pull snake, so he walked backwards pulling both.  So cute. He is also better with his animal sounds and wants the stuffed woof woof to be his stuffed animal, not T's.  T is conceding.

E is also better at copying.  He wants to join in at preschool.  He puts his hands out for hand sanitizer when all the other kids line up.  T was playing "give mommy hand sanitizer" in the tub, filling up old shampoo bottles and giving me just a bit.  E showed me what I was supposed to do with the hand sanitizer once it was on my hands, since I didn't do it right away.  Then T asked E if he wanted to give mommy some. So E filled up his bottle and gave me some. 

E has figured out how to open bottles that snap open and shut.  Like toothpaste.  Careful.

E has also figured out how to get on the couch by pulling a chair over.  He is always so impressed with himself when he does that.  He did it during pre school in our lazy boy and then proceeded to rock with glee, impressed that he got up and then that he could have so much fun rocking.

During preschool we were reading a book and all the kids were sitting in their chairs looking intently at the pages.  So e did the same.  He pulled his chair over really close and peered closely at pictures, just like everyone else.  Except he was too close and someone started yelling that they couldn't see.

E does lots of copying.  W has noted it and quoted the Olivia book.  In the Olivia book, there is a page that says her little brother is copying her all the time and it bothers her.  So she has to be firm.  W remembered that page and quoted it the other day.

W was super cute with T at lunch.  Everyone wanted their manderins peeled.  The big kids are big enough to do it, but often forget.  So I told T that he could wait until E's were peeled and then it would be his turn.  W stepped up and offered to peel all of T's orange peels.  T encouraged her by saying that she is better at peeling oranges than him and if she could peel them all.  She was happy to help. 

W can count backwards from 60 by herself.  I have no idea how she suddenly has that skill.  She also has noticebly improved on how she writes her name.

T got a pair of wings from the flight attendant.  It is a sticker that has the southwest heart on it.  He gave it to me so that I "can remember that I love you Mom!"

T got out the smaller of his bikes, the ones without training wheels.  He rode around the driveway a bit without training wheels!  Very exciting.

I have no pictures of this week with them.  I think it was because I was snuggling and hugging them instead of trying to capture the moment.  Just enjoying the moments.

Vacation is fun but being with family is more fun.  I told J no more long vacations without the kids.  I'm sure my mom would second that.