The Monkey Needs Glasses

About a week ago we took a trip to the pediatric eye specialist for the first time. The Monkey has been complaining that she can't see things on the Smartboard at school and I have seen her move to watch movies and cartoons on the television. She reads so much though, I'm surprised that she doesn't have more trouble reading. 

They dilated her eyes and found her prescription the old school way. They had her wear these cool glasses and put several different lens in until they found the right combination for her eyes.

It did take us several days and visits to different eye care places to find the perfect pair of glasses. This is a huge transition and I'm really excited for her to be able to see again! I'll have to update with a photo of her in her new glasses when we get them and also how she feels about wearing them.

Baby Chewie Got A Haircut!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Wordless Wednesday

Mer. Cold.

Can we cut the super cold weather??

Ok, that kills mosquitoes and other super annoying so insects so maybe I need to change the question - can I leave this place while it has super cold weather to kill all the bugs??

There. That's more like it.

But the answer is no. Not this year.

Last night I noticed that we left for dance class and it was still light outside. I can tell the days are getting longer - or should I say there's more sunshine, which is fantastic because we need to spend some more time outside. Summer is so easy when the kids can just go outside in the backyard and just be outside. Plus the fresh air makes everyone happier and definitely more tired at night, but more dirty. HA!!

It's that time of year where I'm dreading the winter because I've run out of things to do, people have stopped shoveling their sidewalks making walking the dog a ridiculous chore (I actually went out and salted the street one day because I was tired of slipping and sliding walking down to the car), and I hate getting all the winter stuff on/off. It just makes getting out the door with young kids such an annoying thing. Though Baby Chewie has learned how to put on his jacket and boots, it doesn't mean that he actually WANTS to.

Most of my problem is that I don't want to wear boots anymore - I have several pairs of awesome shoes that I really want to wear but I don't want them covered in gross Minnesota winter crud from the streets. And I'd really like to just walk outside without wearing a jacket for once.

GAH. But we get all four seasons and fresh snow is just so lovely. I shouldn't complain too much because with climate change, at this point, who knows what will happen - we may get colder before the extreme heat. I'm not sure, but I need to start paying more attention so that I can start to plan my garden too (because there's Phil, I'm going to need to move a lot of my plants to the front yard. He demolished a few butterfly friendly ones that I'm in mourning of).

So enough with the complaints and on with the week. Happy Wednesday!

Wordless Wednesday

Accountability

I've been trying to work out daily since December in the early morning.

I haven't done it all days - I feel like every 2-3 days my body straight up shuts me down and says, nope, not today! So I have skipped morning workouts to get my sleep and then did them later in the day - but then I feel like I've lost part of my day to get things done and I rush and rush to clean, cook, get the kids' shit together (and get my shit together!). 

In this I've also realized that I really LIKE lifting weights and working out so I really don't want to miss a workout. I think they're fun - I have also noticed that I've had to buy bigger weights...so yay!!!

When I miss a day, I realize I'm pretty darn cranky and I just feel anxious or like I should be doing something or getting more steps in or frankly, just moving around more. 

So I thought I'd share my sweaty selfies because I think it's important to share my accountability. I WANT to workout and I need to make sure that I somehow keep track of everything I do. Also, Phil is totally on my team. I think he's been in every one of my sweaty selfies since November!!

Book Review: Two Children's Books

The Crocodile Who Didn't Like Water by Gemma Merino

Baby Chewie loved this book from the library this past week. Originally I reserved this book because Baby Chewie is taking swim class and he was not a fan of putting his face in the water. I was on a hunt to find books to help him get over his fear of putting his face and nose in the water. As it turns out, this crocodile really didn't like water because SPOILER ALERT he wasn't a crocodile. The illustrations are quite lovely and I like how the story progresses. It's easy for a 3.5 year old to follow along with the pictures. 

Baby Chewie says, "I liked the dragon and his sneeze!"

The Great Day by Taro Gomi

This book is so much fun to read and such a fast and easy read. I really appreciate the fact that people of color are the prominent family and that makes me so happy to share with my preschooler. I really try to make sure that we include books like this because it is so important for kids to see different people and see the way that families of all colors, shapes, sizes live. The little boy wakes up first. The little boy eats breakfast first. The little boy gets hurt first. The little boys cries first. The boy washes up first. Baby Chewie is in a phase right now where HE HAS TO BE FIRST and this book completely spoke to him. He knew exactly what the boy was feeling and Baby Chewie enjoyed reading this book over and over again. I really liked it too - the words matched the pictures on the page very well and the illustrations were bright, colorful and simple to understand. 

Happy preschool reading!!

Bubbles for Phil

I was watching an Instagram video of dogs popping bubbles with their teeth and immediately wanted to see if Phil would pop bubbles. And he does!

If The Monkey blows bubbles, then both Phil & Baby Chewie jump for the bubbles. It's like two kids in a candy store. I'm really excited to try the bubble machine this summer!!

5 AM Workouts