Halloween Night

Tonight, the girls traded in their former bug costumes to become princesses for an evening. These costumes were taken from our dress-up closet about ten minutes prior to leaving the house for trick-or-treat.....

Halloween Party II

By our second Halloween Party, we had a last minute costume change. The girls both opted to be ladybugs.

Who's a Baby?

Dagny has a friend who's going to have a baby sister in a couple of weeks, if not sooner. As I explain to both of my girls this fact, Dagny always assures me, "Mommy, I a baby."

I assume, she is trying to enforce the fact that, indeed, she is the baby of the California Haim clan.

I indulge her when she announces such facts, "Yes Dagny, you are my baby!"

Dagny repeats more loudly, "Mommy, I A BABY!"

Me: I know Dagny, you are the baby of our family. You are the youngest in our family.

Dagny (smiling): I A BABY!

Me: But honey, did you know that real little babies don't get to eat pizza?

Pause.

Me: Did you know that babies don't get to eat candy at Halloween?

Dagny (her resolve slipping a bit): I a baby....

Me: Did you know that babies don't get to go to school?

Pause.

Dagny (emphatically): I A BIG GIRL!

Halloween Party I

Today was our first Halloween party of the season. The girls dressed up as a bee and a butterfly.

Admittedly, Valerie put together her own costume & was quite proud of herself. The wings were from one of those dollar stores. It was probably the cheapest costume in the country.....

A "Different" Kind of Mommy

In preparation for Halloween, I bought Valerie an orange pumpkin t-shirt, a "spooky" black t-shirt, orange leopard print pants and black candy corn pants. As predicted, she loves showing spirit for nearly any special holiday and wore the clothing with much enthusiasm.

Recently, I picked her up from school and asked if her teachers appreciated her Halloween "spirit".

Valerie responded, "Yes, mommy. My teachers really like my Halloween clothes!"

So I prodded, "Do the other children wear Halloween clothes, too?"

Valerie assured me, "No mommy. The other kids' mommies don't let them wear Halloween clothes."

Oh, I thought. Well, too bad for the other kids.

Valerie continued, "See mom, you're a DIFFERENT KIND of mommy."

I couldn't help but ask, "Am I a different GOOD kind of mommy or different BAD kind of mommy?" Did I really want to know the answer to that question? Perhaps I shouldn't have asked.

But, she nodded and rolled her eyes, "Mom, you're a GOOD kind of mommy. I LOVE wearing Halloween outfits!"

Phew!

The Curse of the School Baby

Dagny's teachers often allow Dagny to bring home a baby from school to "borrow" until the next school day. It's great for the children. I guess one could argue that it helps to teach responsibility. However, this is hell for the parents. Of all the things we parents are supposed to remember, focusing on the whereabouts of another thing, be it a baby doll, is too much pressure. As much as I have discouraged the baby from coming home with Dagny, it still seems to visit our home at least once a week.

On Tuesday, the teachers once again awarded Dagny the responsibility of borrowing the baby. At the time, I noted to the teachers that this particular baby is looking a little crusty, so I would try to launder her if time permitted, prior to the next scheduled class. Apparently, children absorb nearly everything (unless you're asking them to set the table for dinner or to get dressed for school).

Departing Dagny's school with the burdensome baby doll, I drove to the pediatrician for the annual flu shot. I believe this particular baby doll is cursed. Either that, or this doll is gunning for me! This doll is nearly an appendage to Dagny's little body. But, she seems to lose her continuously. I've returned to half a dozen places to retrieve this damn doll. Lately, I tell my girls that their baby dolls and teddy bears must take a nap in the car while we enter various establishments in the San Fernando Valley. I've learned the hard way, that unless I want to make twice as many trips to each establishment retrieving these playthings, it's best to leave them in the car. It's enough being responsible for my children, let alone their toys.

Since we were visiting the doctors office today, and I suspected she might need some extra comfort after her flu immunization, I allowed her to bring the baby doll with her. Further, Dagny insisted that the baby needed a flu shot, too. I tried to keep track of the baby, in addition to my own kids, while trying to keep them entertained as we waited for our turn. As we were leaving and rushing to get home for dinner prior to a major meltdown, I must have lost track of that darn baby again. Getting through rush hour, the so-called part of the evening ritual involving feeding, bathing, reading and going to bed for the kids. At bedtime, Dagny requested that she sleep with her "school" baby. I searched high and low for that thing. I couldn't find her anywhere.

On Wednesday, I called the pediatrician's office. I was sure we left her there. I must have called the receptionist three times on Wednesday. Has the baby turned up yet? No, we haven't seen her, was the repeated response.

I continued to tear my house apart, searching for this dirty doll. Surely, we could afford to replace the doll. But, who wants to waste money on a situation that could have been prevented?

By mid-morning today, I abandoned the search and resumed my daily household responsibilities. I really needed to attend to the build-up of laundry. There were clean clothes still in the dryer from two or three days ago. I opened the door to the dryer. At the top of a mound of wrinkled clean clothes laid the dirty baby doll.

While relieved that I wouldn't have to replace the baby for the preschool, I laughed to myself at how helpful darling Dagny tried to be.

When I dropped Dagny at school this afternoon, I recounted the baby's adventure over the last two days. Surely now, that baby will stay at school.

Flu Shot Badge

This morning, I made the time to stand in line for my annual flu shot. Of course, my darling Dagny accompanied me.

When it was my turn, she sat in my lap as quietly and as motionless as a turtle. The nurse asked about her age. Stating that she was almost two and a half, the nurse looked worried and questioned my intention to hold her in my lap while having a needle jammed in my shoulder. I assured the nurse, that Dagny would be fine. Let's just get this business completed.

Dagny intently studied every move the nurse made. Dagny did not make a peep as the nurse opened the needle, filled it full of the immunization, and stuck it into my shoulder. By the end, the nurse was shocked at Dagny's impeccable behavior. While I'd like to take the responsibility for her good conduct, it was really all her. She was just interested in the proceedings.

Later, this afternoon, it was Dagny's turn to get her flu shot. The nurse instructed me to hug Dagny and turn her head away from the needle. Having already seen the procedure on me, she couldn't help but still be interested. The process of the injection took at most 5 seconds. My youngest child did not flinch or scowl. You'd have thought she was watching a mesmerizing circus act. Even the pediatric nurse commented on how she's never seen a child react so calmly to a shot. We agreed, she's a tough kid!

She wore her Band-Aid like a badge. For the rest of the day, any human being we encountered, she pointed to the Band-Aid on her shoulder announcing, "I got a foo shot!"