Weekend Of Dreams

Ruari helped me title this post, she must have had a really awesome weekend! Happy Valentine's Day. I was a bit behind schedule this year and downplayed the whole thing, but Nuala totally called me out on it. Heart shaped pancakes? Is that all? She wasn't demanding, but I could tell she was a bit let down. So on Saturday morning, one day late, I got out the banners and found the time to stuff a couple of pretty treat bags. Nothing big, chocolate hearts and lollipops, but it was just enough. Better late than never, right? Plus if you wait an extra day all the candy goes on sale.

We are in the middle of a four day weekend here and it is snowing today. Really snowing. Michaele had her baby, a chunky beauty named Isla and we've all been admiring her from afar and talking about how excited we are for them to move back home this spring. They're in France right now and it feels much too far away. Even though I'd love for Oisín to have a little brother, the idea of having a daughter  makes me smile and the vision of two little girl cousins running around is enough to remind me that Oisín already has plenty of brothers….

I've been keeping Saoirse home from her afternoon preschool with increasing regularity. Honestly all the driving around back and forth all over the place is just too much sometimes and it is easier to say to heck with it. But it's a bad habit, one that Brendan especially doesn't appreciate, and so I am recommitting myself to the schedule even on those days when I'd much rather cuddle with her on the couch instead. There's less than 4 months left in the school year and soon it will be summer vacation, I swear. We just have to make it through the rest of this grueling winter first. I don't even really mind the cold or the snow, and things are starting to improve now that the sun isn't setting at 4pm, but being cooped up for weeks on end is starting to really take a toll on all of us. These kids need fresh air and a chance to be outside with the earth. We are all growing restless and weary.

Oisín had his first double ear infection recently, and it was a rough couple of days. Poor baby was up for 4 nights, just miserable with pain and wanting to be held upright. This is really his first illness since his bout with Pertussis last winter and so all in all we've been really lucky, but it was still hard having him in so much pain and pretty much feeling powerless to help. He's back up to full speed, running around the house like a little fire cracker, tormenting the cat and wrestling with anyone he can get his chubby little hands on. He's nearly 17 months old, weighs 25 pounds, is fully weaned from the breast, drinks coconut milk, eats just about anything, loves giving out drooly baby kisses, is completely smitten with all his big brothers and sisters (Finn and Sidhe especially), has become a total dada's boy and rarely cries at bedtime anymore so long as there is a book in his crib to cuddle with. Who needs stuffed animals anyways? He still doesn't talk much (Dada, Mama, bus, dog, Brenna) and I'm trying not to worry, but I am almost certain he'll need some type of speech therapy at some point. I had Micah evaluated at around 24 months when he had a speech delay and Oisín seems to be following a similar pattern. The good news is that he is a total book worm and is willing to sit and read books for hours if given the option, so his comprehension and receptive language are right on track. I feel like Saoirse waited a while to talk as well, so time will tell.

Nuala, Saoirse and Micah slept over at grandma's on Saturday and so Oscar was the only little kid left at the house, which pretty much meant that once Oisín was in bed he had us all to himself. We dissected an owl pellet and tucked him in together; all three of us (four of us, I suppose?) squished into the bottom bunk whispering in the glow of the nightlight. It sounds ridiculous when I type it or say it out loud but it didn't feel ridiculous, it felt special and was another reminder that the connections we seek, the connections we crave, are right in front of us. And they don't require pretty packages, extravagant plans or fancy fillers, they only require a little bit of time and the ability to be truly present.

The weekend was otherwise predictable and ordinary. Forensics (congratulations Maija on your third place trophy), a birthday party, sleepovers, playdates, an anime convention, haircuts, the Lego Movie, tons of reading, dinner guests, a brunch date and lots of 30% off chocolates and as always I wouldn't have it any other way.

School Days

Seven kids are at school, one baby TODDLER is napping, one sick 5th grader is feeling pretty awful, one cat is meowing for absolutely no reason (AGAIN) and I am supposed to be baking something or wrapping something else or even maybe cleaning anything but here I sit instead. Wishing I had a coffee, a pastry, some quiche. I'm not picky.

As you know we started at a new school this past fall. The twins had pretty much done everything they could do at their amazing preschool, they were there for three years and I can't say enough good things about the school, the staff, their entire experience there, but I digress. So after three years the time came for them to spread their wings and fly. We had to make a hard choice between two options and figure out if we were ready to send them to the private school Micah attends or keep them in a Montessori environment. Of course I agonized over it, spent time observing at both schools, kept Brendan up for late night chit chat sessions and just generally acted like the sky was falling. It was very familiar territory for us because a year earlier when faced with a similar decision I behaved pretty much the exact same way. Hey, at least I'm consistent.

In the end we followed our instincts and they now attend a public Montessori school that is less than 3 miles away from our house. I still have a constant nagging in the back of my head and Micah's private school is always tugging at my heart asking me if I'm sure I did the right thing. In a day and age where it seems that so many are struggling with finding the right fit for their family, for finding quality education for their children, we are having a difficult time choosing between 2 really wonderful school environments. I know, I know, this is a problem everyone should be so lucky to have. I realize how crazy it sounds, but I hate feeling so torn. I have ties within both settings now and feel loyalty to both of them. What it ultimately boiled down to was finding a place for Oscar and Nuala to be able to really have their needs met academically and after visiting the traditional classroom last spring I didn't feel like it would be the right fit for them and I'm glad I followed my instincts.

Fast forward one semester and the big news is that they moved up to lower elementary (a 1st-3rd grade classroom) from the Children's House (K3-K5). We started discussing this transition back in early November and there was lots of open dialogue, a couple of meetings, yet another round of classroom observations and as I'm sure you can imagine: plenty of late night discussions between 2 parents. Poor Brendan is pretty much at the end of his rope at his point! But there were so many variables to consider when making this choice and I needed some time and support/guidance while we tried to figure it all out. In the end we landed once again in a very safe nest. They got to stay together and transition into one classroom (which was my preference from the get go~I know this is one of those things that can vary from twin family to twin family quite dramatically but for us sticking together is still working and you know what they say about that right?) and so far so good. They are being challenged and their love for learning is being nurtured and encouraged. What more can a mom ask for? Except maybe a pastry….

He learned how to climb up on the furniture recently. I was not amused. He was ecstatic.

Oscar is currently on a Redwall kick. It started back in November and has simply gained momentum since then. He's about the finish Eulalia and has already devoured Redwall, Mattimeo, Mossflower, Mariel and Salamandastron. Luckily for all of us there are no less than 500 thirty books in this series, not to mention a Redwall cookbook and a cartoon series so he is set for the next few months. Brendan has just started the Harry Potter series with them at bedtime and I have been sneaking into their room at night in order to listen to him.

31 weeks this past Sunday, which means about 10 more to go since I'm usually about a week "late" but perfectly on time. So far this pregnancy has flown by, I think having the holidays in there really helped to speed things along, but I feel a little more antsy lately. There is no need to rush through the last stretch of this time together, but I can't wait to meet this child, to feel this baby in my arms and against my skin. This intimate space we share right now, just the two of us, is lovely and I am blessed with drama free pregnancies, but I am starting to feel impatience creeping in. 

Less than one year ago today, spring 2013.

We went to Micah's school last week for parent teacher conferences and hung out in the library for a little while afterwards. They were having a book fair and so it was the perfect place for us to hang out while we waited for Micah to get done with play practice. This year they are doing Alice In Wonderland and he tried out for the part of the Mad Hatter and landed it. I'm so proud of him for so many reasons right now. Not only did he have a great conference and bring home an awesome report card, but he is challenging himself outside of the classroom as well and taking risks that not everyone is brave enough to take, it's really wonderful to see his self confidence blooming right before my eyes.

Speaking of being PROUD. Finn got his first college acceptance letter a few weeks back. Not only do they want him, they also offered him a partial scholarship! He has worked so hard throughout high school for this and I can't even begin to express how happy we are for him and how incredibly proud! He brushes it all off and is very casual about the whole thing, but I hope he knows inside just how much of an achievement this is and how all of his hard work really is going to pay off.

It's nearly impossible to imagine Finn going off to college next year, he's still so young at heart in a lot of ways and is the guy who willingly helps his sister with her algebra homework, wrestles on the floor with the baby or discusses Redwall books with his little brother. Just recently he joined the 3 little kids for their nightly bedtime reading of The Return of the King because Brendan never read it to him as a child and so he was due. August seems so far away still, but I know it will be here in the blink of an eye and even though it's hard to imagine the next stage of his young adulthood and what it will mean for everyone in our house, I have no doubt that he'll be ready to rise to the occasion even if the rest of us are still in denial.

In lieu of Saturday night dates, which are virtually non-existant lately, we have been doing a lot of brunch. This alone time together is really important for our relationship. Let's be honest, we have a lot going on and it's easy to let our marriage sort of take the back burner but in the long run taking time for each other is actually very important for the family as a whole. I love this man and I like spending time with him, the food is just a bonus.

A few weeks ago we couldn't even get a brunch date and by mid-week I was going crazy trying to get a moment or two alone together. So, I put together a cheese tray for us and got all the kids on board to help babysit (divide and conquer approach) so that we could have a mini-date. As soon as he pulled into the drive way from work, Finn took Oisín up to his room, Micah took Oscar to play legos, and the little girls went with the big girls. It was spontaneous and last minute and probably not as fancy as a night out, but it was 23 minutes for just us and it was perfect.

There, I think I've covered most of the important stuff from January. Which means I can get away with a wordless post next time. Just need to charge the camera battery and actually take some photos.