Easter Bunny Surprise

Today I let Norah watch some Elmo and accidentally fell asleep while she was doing so. When I woke up (because my cell phone rang – thank goodness) Norah was covered in chocolate. She apparently had found her Easter Bunny.

This picture was taken AFTER she wiped her face on our sheets! I think it is pretty funny that Norah gobbled up most of her Easter Bunny while I snoozed but what’s even better is that she had the sense to turn off the computer and be extra quiet so I wouldn’t wake up. This little girl definitely knew she was being sneaky because she HATES it when I fall asleep on the job. If I start to doze off before bedtime (something I’ve been doing a lot recently because I’m pregnant) she yells “MAMA!” to wake me up. When Bryan gets up with Norah in an attempt to let me sleep in past 6 she comes up to me and says “come, come come” to appeal to me to join them for breakfast – or she says “Up Up” until I put her in bed with me at which point she sits on me and bounces up and down – real great for queasiness. Anyhow – she evidently decided she didn’t mind letting me nap as long as there was chocolate. Who can blame her?

Norah’s Pecking Order: Mama, Daddy, Elmo

This is a post I’ve been meaning to do for a while. We have so much trouble getting Norah to bed that we indulge her in some (of her many) ridiculous demands.  We’ve said no to many and even put limits on how many books and stuffed animals may accompany her to her crib – but we still sit in her room while she falls asleep. I know it sounds like one of those situations where we just need to bite the bullet – but trust me we’ve come a long way – this really is progress. We try to be tough but her will always outlasts our resolve, so night after night one of us sits in her room waiting the 30+ minutes it takes for her to finally drift off to sleep. Then after a good 10 minutes or so of what sounds like a sleeping Norah, we tip toe out only to hear her sit up and say “chair” commanding us back to our post. I know, I know, it is insane and we seriously do this for over an hour at least half the time. I usually sit in there with her for the first shift but after I get too frustrated from my failed attempts to tip toe out I send in Bryan. Sometimes this is okay with her and sometimes it isn’t. Lately Bryan has been negotiating with her telling her she can either have him sit in the room with her or no one. If she still cries then he leaves. Usually at this point we discuss whether we should just make her tough it out and we always at least try. While we wait Norah cries for me until she finally gives up and then cries “Daddy, Daddy, Daddy, Daddy” and when she gives up on him she starts to cry “Elmo, Elmo, Elmo” and then she completely loses it. This is very frustrating for us but I can’t help but laugh when she starts crying for Elmo to save her. Tonight hasn’t been a great night, but it hasn’t been a record breaking bad night either. We put Norah to bed a little after 8 and I snuck out at 8:45 only to get caught. Bryan was in there for another 20 minutes or so and she has been crying in her crib alone for about 40 minutes. It is almost 10 pm!! Poor stubborn Norah. I wish I could share my love of sleep with her.

Norah Feeds Geese

Just when I think we are running out of “firsts” for Norah to experience I think of a few more. It occurred to me the other day that she had never fed ducks. Monday was an exceptionally warm day so Bryan took most of it off (because a warm day here is like holiday that needs to be observed) and we headed down to feed ducks at Cayuga Lake. The ducks were too intimidated by the geese to stick around so we mostly fed geese. I was a little disappointed by this because it seemed unfair and I felt like we were rewarding the bullies, but Norah didn’t mind and had a fabulous time throwing generous handfuls of bread at them.

We started out with just a few But eventually the word got out and we had quite the crowd

Dress Up

Last Friday Bryan and I were tidying up the apartment while Norah was running around in her diaper fending for herself. I had taken off her jammies with the intent of dressing her but had given up after several resisted attempts. It turned out Norah had her own idea of what she wanted to wear that day.

She didn’t do this completely on her own – she cried out for help when she couldn’t get her shoes on. I found her in distress with twisted socks and the wrong shoe half on each foot so I sorted that out for her.It really doesn’t look that bad. I think the hat pulls the outfit together.

Girls Night

Norah and I had our own girls night while Bryan was at Priesthood session: I gave her a manicure. She is a little greasy in this pic because it was after her bath and Aquaphor rub down.

Gymnastics

Because Ithaca’s winters are so ridiculously cold and Norah and I have had to find a variety of indoor activities to keep us sane – yes, even through March and early April. Pretty much every Friday morning Norah and I head down to Finger Lakes Gymnastics for “unstructured playtime” which as the name suggests is basically a free for toddlers. There are only a few rules: one at a time on the trampoline and stay within reach of your kid. Even these rules are very loosely enforced. Sometimes unstructured playtime can get pretty crowded and crazy as swarms of toddlers arrive to release pent up energy. Since their toddler flight patterns can be unpredictable, I am kept on my toes running around the tumbling matt and cheese wedges trying to prevent collisions and have never before managed to take pictures but this Friday Bryan went with me and I was able watch him chase Norah around the gym. Even so it was very difficult to get decent pictures of Norah during “nastics” as she calls it. She just moves too fast.

Norah loves jumping these days. We really need to get a video up of her jumping. It is one of her greatest accomplishments.Norah’s favorite part is when she gets her stamp at the end. Such a brilliant way to get the kids to leave the gym.