All *I* Want for Christmas

Is a good dose of bottomless patience. Please?

What I've been up to

For those that follow my blog for my escapades and not my kid's...oh, there aren't any? Well then, I suppose that means I'd better include some kid-like adventures in this post as well...Scroll down now, if all you want is your kid-fix!

So there is this big huge holiday coming up, literally looming before us (no, not Thanksgiving, though if we are going to celebrate, I'd probably better start thinking about it) and because we are leaving on the 16th, my time for getting things together is cut a bit short.

Some peeks at what I've been doing (and in doing so, have managed to break six sewing machine needles, the cheap ones are pointless) and nearly start a stove top fire.
I'm a bit here and there today, and started this post hours ago, so don't go looking for cohesiveness, and just be glad it's up at all, because being interrupted for hours makes me not want to bother with finishing...

A few weeks ago, I was going through my bloglines reader and one of the blogs I read (I have no idea who this person is, or why I even started reading in the first place...), The Princess and the Monkey, was doing a month-long blogtoberfest and putting up daily blogs (wow). Two of those blogs were food-related and they were food items that I really have to make myself if I want to have them.

So when she posted about bagels, I had to make bagels.
And those turned out so yummy, that I made new bagels two days later, and then I made them again a week after that...
and then I burned them on the almost-stove-top fire yesterday.

And the she posted about making Cinnamon Rolls and I had to make cinnamon rolls. Now her cinnamon rolls look a lot more appetizing than mine did. But mine tasted fine, I just have neither bread machine nor bread flour...but they were soft and they were sweet and very, very sticky.

And we all had two and had to tell ourselves to stop so as not to have a stomach ache.

So cooking, and baking, and sewing and yes, even scrapping. I've been doing it all. All that is, except cleaning. Easy to push that one to the back of the line until it becomes a volcano about to erupt about your head!

First thing I sewed, was a Feliz for Juliet. Partly because I was a horrible friend and never got her a baby-present (TWO YEARS AGO) but mostly, just because I really wanted to make her one. It was finished up last week Saturday and popped in the mail with two matching headbands on Tuesday. Cara says it arrived in one piece yesterday, and therefore, I can share it with my blog readers without ruining the surprise! The Feliz is a party dress I fell in love with, but when I rec'd the pattern, nearly choked. It was not a simplicity pattern, that was for sure! Thank goodness, a kind soul out there in internet-world, wrote up a Feliz sew-along on her blog which enabled me to make the dress not one, not two, but THREE times, and counting. That's right, I made the Feliz for Georgia's birthday (it's the pink butterfly dress she's wearing) so making it for Juliet was a smoother ride. And when I made it a third time this past week, I hardly needed to look at the directions at all!

For Juliet's Feliz, I gave piping and bias tape a try and was dazzled with the results:

::front view::

::back view::

::piping detail::

On Wednesday, it was St. Martin's Day so there was a big Laternenumzug at Georgia's Kindergarten that she (and Dean) got dragged to. Georgia was not excited and didn't enjoy it. I'm not sure she 100% understood why she was marching around the town with a lantern and a candle in the dark. Dark means pj's on, teeth brushed and bed, and she told me that after dinner when I was trying to explain to her that we were going to Kindergarten. In the dark. Because really? why would you do that? Go to Kindergarten at bed time? And walk around with candles? Yah, beats me. But then, she's the one been talking about St. Martin in Kiga for weeks now, and learning the songs! And of course, it had to be on a Wednesday. So there was Kiga pick-up and a rushed lunch and then a nap cut short (for dean) so we could rush back to Kiga for Music and then an hour later pick-up from Music and then a very early dinner and the confused conversation about why in the world we are going to turn right around and go back to Kiga now?

But we did. And we left at the same time as the neighbors/landlords and walked with them and I brought her into her classroom and left her there. Dean and I waited outside for the parade to start:

And then I told Georgia to walk on, we'd join in near the end. only we couldn't get int with the stroller and when I finally caught up enough to see where Georgia was, she was not happy. she was all but crying, and holding Irene's hand. So Dean and I nearly ran down a whole slew of Kindergartners to get to Georgia and calm her down. And then Sven showed up and we ended up at the end of the whole thing and so Georgia couldn't see the horse, missed the re-enactment of the St. Martin's story, and was missing the singing and her friends. She told me she was very sad. So we squeezed our way up to the front, which meant leaving Dean and Sven behind - she didn't like that.

And at the very end, there was a bonfire and benches for the kids and more singing and then geese-cookies and kinder-punsch.

Georgia was crying to go home by this point and scared of the fire because of sparks jumping out. and the fact that she was on the end of the bench and being squeezed slowly off by the other girls. and then her candle went out.

Dean appeared to enjoy it all much more than Georgia.

Friday was picturs at Bunchkids. Beautiful weather, Georgia in her birthday dress, Dean in his easter vest, both very white and the photographer decided to take advantage of the beautiful (warm) weather and have photos outside. the chance that they will be beautiful is high, but the chance that my white-clad kids would end up in the mud was much higher...!

Dean also woke up Friday with a fever (after keeping me up half the night) and so there was a lot of morning lounging and no sport. again.

But he's so darn cute...

And I was going to include some scrapbooking, but my computer has slowed down to slower than a snail's pace, meaning it's time to reboot (and hope) and therefore, I'll leave you with a few more pictures that are uploaded and that'll have to be that:

Firstly: Georgia's first Christmas Dress (at least, made by me, I suppose it's the 2nd officially). The Feliz again, this time without the million ruffles in the back, and therefore one on the bottom. This dress ate four sewing machine needles...and no, she won't put it on.

::front view::

::back view::

::bottom ruffle detail::

::trim detail::

and a few more works in progress:

And time is up - I have to run!!

Coming to you from Irritation-Land

I'm frustrated, irritated and am verzweifeln. The Computer refuses to cooperate, projects are going haywire WRONG, orders are coming up wrong (like hello? I pay nearly $12/yd for corduroy and get quilting cotton instead?) and just to confuse things even more, I get a wedding invitation from a friend who got married six years ago. Lost in the mail? Must have been, only the date shipped was last week!

Tonight is the Laternen Umzug and before that is music and I'm just tired, tired, tired.

And that is why I can't keep up with this darn blog. No matter how hard I'd like to try, the computer just won't let me.

And that's enough grumbling from my side. Sometimes it just needs to get out.

Happy Halloween - a bit belated

Did we celebrate? Yah. Kind of. It went like this: Georgia ran around all morning in her PJ's, refusing to get dressed. At some point, I cornered her and told her she could wear her Cinderella dress all day today! She happily agreed. Once she was dressed, I really wanted to go out so she could actually show off her dress. That was a bit of a mess. We ended up at the new McDonald's in the hopes of getting the Barbie toy they had in their happy meals (for the plane) but on Halloween, they switched the toys. It was a total bomb.

Dean (coming down with yet another case of bronchitis) was supposed to wear a dalmatian costume, but he flat out refused. He ended up in his skeleton tee from last year - at least I still had it!

After Dean's nap, we pulled out the pumpkins. Georgia took off the dress (good move, Mommy!) and for the first time in four years, stuck her hands inside and got them gooey!

Dean, cranky from being wakened from his nap and from being sick, refused to join in the fun at first. However, an equally cranky Daddy (who was roused from his couch-nap) wouldn't lay with him on the couch any longer because I had given him the job of photographer (he was also cranky about that). So eventually, Dean joined in. He didn't want to touch the guts, but he did grab a knife.

I think I was in the process of cleaning out the rest of G's pumpkin as it was 'too heavy' for her...

And then she had to wait for her carving experience until I had finished carving Dean's pumpkin.

at least, she was supposed to be waiting!

what's in there?!

Georgia did try and draw her face on herself, but drawing on paper is still challenging, so the bumpy, slippery surface of a pumpkin was just a bit beyond her 4-year old abilities. Next year!

And then I begged and begged for pictures. Pictures inside were impossible, so I asked them to go to the balcony...slightly more success, on Georgia's part at least.

I give you: Cinderella (and many thanks to Cara for the dress pattern! This has been Georgia's favorite dress, period. No other dress got the same reaction that this one did when she saw it finished, or the excitement while it was being made):

And a little skeleton:

Showing Dean the pumpkins:

Unsuccessful attempt at getting a picture of them together:

TRICK-OR-TREAT!

He(rr)bstlich!

I thought we had missed Fall, seeing's as two weeks ago it was snowing on green leaves...but this week has taken a turn toward a true Fall, with turning leaves and wonderfully warm(ish) weather. This morning, after hearing enough of Dean's whining and realizing he was just plain bored, I got him dressed and we set out towards Georgia's Kindergarten nearly an hour early, just so we could enjoy the weather, let him walk in the woods, swing, and push the stroller at his own pace. Oh yah, and so I could take pictures, I haven't done that in way too long.

::the tree across the street::

::these might actually be red all year round...?::

::after the woods and an attempt at getting photos of him in fall leaves,
we stopped at the swings::

::Dean! Go stand over there by the yellow leaves!!!!
(this is my favorite photo of the day)::

::in such a good mood after the swings,
he pushed his stroller to Kindergarten himself!::

After walking past Irene, who was going in to the Kindergarten, while we were going out,Georgia insisted, stubbornly, that she was "waiting for Disabella" and would not leave until Irene and Isabella came back out. She and Dean played at the 'fall table' in the foyer while waiting.

::of course Irene said "yes" when Georgia asked to play on the ding-dong slide. Dean was the first up and had fun in the tree house before Isabella kicked him out::

Dean's 2nd Birthday (lots of pictures)

Getting this little booger out of bed on his birthday, was anything but easy. He's not easy to wake up generally and is not yet old enough for a day as special as his birthday to be any different. Georgia was already up and had seen his birthday table and wanted to open his presents. She did her best to convince him to get up. He was definitely grumpy, wasn't sure what to think of the decorations and was willing to let Georgia open up his presents.

::grumpy bum::

::birthday table::

::opening Big Bird::

::trying very hard to open this one, but foil paper is a bit hard for toddlers::

::finally! his very own Kitty!::

Lucky Dean, he got to have his actual party on his birthday.

Playing with their magnet books from Oma & Opa:

After his nap, Dean woke up to a fully decorated living room:

He was very excited about the balloons!

He didn't want to open his presents, and seemed happier before his guest arrived...

Eventually, he did start opening his presents, and made it known, that they were his.

the dinosaur!

And finally, Cake Time! This one is right after Arthur blew out the candles:



So we lit them again:



And Dean blew them out, after we re-lit them two more times and Oma pulled Arthur away from the table...


but it was worth it, he was very pleased with himself when he finally got to blow them out!

The Cake:

And yes, Georgia was also at the party, although she was bored until Sebastien and Alexander turned up!

Dean might have had a good time, I'm not really sure. He enjoyed the cake (and did a much better job eating it this year), he liked his presents (especially the legos and the sesame street duplo blocks) and he liked the decorations, but the people were a bit much for him.

You see, my two-year old? He may go to Bunchkids three days a week and be surrounded by other kids, but we have not managed to force any specific friends on him, and he mostly is stuck playing with his big sister and tagging along on her play dates with her friends. My point being, when he is suddenly put face-to-face with other kids and expected to play with them, he tends to back off. So although he didn't play with Arthur or Alexander, and was too small and maybe a bit too sick to play with Georgia and Sebastien, I think he had a good birthday. I sure hope so!

Actually thinking back on it, his Oma and Opa were visiting and he was coming down with Bronchitis because we had just gone to his U7 and asked the pediatrician if we could stop the cortisone, and then did. He obviously wasn't ready to stop the cortisone as he got slammed with Bronchitis so bad, he missed half a week of BK and was miserable for a while there.

As for the U7 (or the 2-year check-up) the word is: he's too skinny and I'm not feeding him enough. Ahem. Two years ago? Two years ago, this same pediatrician told me that Georgia was overweight and I was feeding her too much. Truth is, both eat the same thing. I don't cater to them, they get the same food to eat, Georgia eats more, Dean eats a tad less. Dean is smaller boned, his metabolism is quicker and he never walks anywhere if he can run. Georiga is bigger boned and happy to sit still. The doctor can go walk his dog as far as I'm concerned.

And there was Dean's birthday, too quick and too short, but time is short and in an hour i have to get Dean up and head out to pick up Georgia so we can go on a playdate.

Mama Grouch, signing out.

Are we Here? is this thing on?

Well, we are alive, but I think this blog here got turned off! It seems, now that I have become a biking Mommy of a kindergartner, I no longer have the free time or the energy to do everything I need to do and as I'm still so new at this, I haven't figured out just how to prioritize when I do have time.

See, up until this year, Georgia had Leon and Emma. Playdates were limited to once a week, maybe with Emma, and whenever we were bored and wanted a distraction with Leon (when they lived downstairs). Suddenly, Georgia has friends! Friends who want her to come over and play! Georgia herself loves playing, but has not yet had the idea that she could ask for friends to come here (thank goodness). So now it seems we are having playdates too many and maybe I need to figure out a happy medium here too. Like, how many playdates are good in a week, especially when combined with Kindergarten itself, and her two extra-curricular activities (music and gymnastics).

Last week, was the most insane week of weeks yet. On Monday, Georgia went to Jack and Jill's and when Dean and I picked her up at 2pm, we biked straight to Isabella's house, where Georgia played, and Dean tagged along, until nearly 6pm!

On Tuesday, after Kindergarten, Georgia, Dean and I went to Gymnastics, where Dean and I sat out in the hallway and tried not to be too bored, while Georgia did 45 mins of sporty gymnastics and had fun.

On Wednesday, Georgia went to a market during Kindergarten (on foot) had music for an hour in the afternoon, and then came home to a playdate with Leon at the playground. She was exhausted (and she wasn't alone).

On Thursday, the weather took a turn for the wet and we biked in the pouring rain to Anabel's house where Georgia and Anabel played and fought (much like when we visit Emma) and Dean tried not to be jealous of the six-month twins. We did go on a wet-walk to see calves (penned in for later slaughtering) and horses (one so thin, it was all ribs).

On Friday we were slated to visit the American's, and Georgia and Audrey were both very excited about it. Unfortunately, Georgia woke up on friday coughing until she puked. We canceled the playdate, but she did go to Kindergarten. She woke up at 2am that night and did the same thing, only she threw-up all over our bed. Thank-you. Dean slept like a rock throughout the whole coughing, puking, bed-cleaning incident. Georgia herself spent Saturday pretty exhausted and whiny.

And this cannot be a typical week, or I may just turn into jelly and melt at the next mention of rain.

I will try and get back here. I'll even try and post pictures of birthdays, including Sven's! I'm not promising though. Because in the background, I am working on one project (one has wrapped up, whew) and trying to figure out and finish up Christmas presents, and for some reason, those things seem more important than blogging, don't you think? Well, if you are the recipient of said Christmas Gifts, I would hope you agree!

Until a more quiet time, Mama Grouch is signing out.

Georgia's Birthday Pictures

Okay, picture-heavy post coming up.

October FIRST:

Best way to get a morning grump out of bed? tell her there's a big present on the table for her:

What is it? whatever it is, she's sure excited, isn't she?!

Oh! it's a cat! the WHITE cat! What's her name? How about Duchess (because she already has a 'malley-cat'. And all day long she said (in response to "happy birthday, Georgia, how old are you?"): Georgie got chuss! a white chuss!

What did she want for her birthday-breakfast? Cheesy Eggs. And Leberwurst.


She came home from Kindergarten (where they watched a puppet show in the basement and were in pitch black when the power went out in our area) to her 'Geburtstags Tisch' from Oma:


She wanted to open! but had to wait for Oma, so she pet Duchess instead.

Finally! She gets to open that big pink present! It is heavy! What was inside? Princess sheets, a princess magnet book, & a darling (hand made) horse card - wonder where that got to?

Trying to get her to smile at least once!


This one loves Duchess too, when he gets the chance:

For lunch, my little (ha!) girl got to eat two chicken drumsticks, and a wing (she likes the crispy skin...) and a baked potato. She loves chicken.

Reading with Duchess. Yes, it's the same day. I had finished the dirndl as much as I could before my sewing machine broke and asked her if she wanted to try it on...

And finally, Daddy came home and we got to have cake!

October!

October blows in with a BANG in our house, as you might remember, if you've been a reader since 2005!

And this year was no different. The month gets busier every year. On Thursday though? My baby girl turned four.

10/01/2009

10/01/2008

9/30/2007

10/01/2006

10/01/2005

Her day started with a much-wished-for cat (pictures later) a puppet-show in Kindergarten, a power outage, two drumsticks and a baked potato for lunch and a white cake with chocolate fudge icing and sprinkles on top. She got to celebrate again on Monday at Jack & Jill's with blueberry muffins, and she's in Kindergarten right now with a pink glittery cake. On Saturday coming, she'll have her birthday party, for which I am frantically still preparing (pinata drying on the balcony, princess hat parts all here, but a broken sewing machine, and that one last cake yet to bake).

Anyway, a quick post to say happy birthday to my 4-year old. Pictures of her day to follow and then we've got to wish the birthday boy a happy day too...I will be back!

Oktoberfest - just the parade this time

A last-minute (it's always last-minute with Sven) decision to see the horses in the Oktoberfest parade took us into downtown Munich on Saturday. We were late, as usual, and Sven was trying to walk as quickly as possible to where the parade was being set up (you know, where they stand around before they get to start?) but Georgia was walking...finally suggested he take her up on his shoulders and I'd take Dean. That way, we made it before they were all off and marching and the kids got to see the horses up close (not all of Munich was in the background watching where the parade starts, most of Munich was out on the streets watching it go by - good move on Sven's side. Anyway, big huge horses pulling wagons of beer - Georgia wanted to touch the horses...

(these are not the big huge horses, obviously, nor a beer-wagon. Where are those pictures? No idea.)

And then we went to lunch, but we wanted to go to Pizza Hut - apparently Pizza Hut is gone. Oops. So we ended up in the Hackerhaus and it took too long. I insisted on Starbucks (thankfully, Georgia loves Starbucks as well) and we headed down the street.

Since it takes Sven hours to eat or drink anything, the kids had plenty of time to play on the big cushy chairs. They both fit in one, but wanted one each:

This was fine, until it got crowded, then we had to kick them back to the chairs around our teeny table.

A bit of force got us going back to the s-bahns and home as both kids were tired and cranky - but they loved riding on the s-bahn.

And finally we got home again.

Jack & Jill's - finally

So yesterday was (finally) the first day of Jack & Jill's and Georgia was nervous and didn't want to go - understandable. However, Sven said she walked in, saw a boy from BK and was so happy, she ran over to him and forgot all about Sven. When Dean and I picked her up, she had a huge smile and said she never cried. Also, Michelle said when Ian saw Georgia, he got all excited and said: "Mommy, there's Georgia!" This is what I was hoping, that there would be kids from BK at J&J's to make it easier.

Georgia did in fact, have such a wonderful time at J&J's yesterday, that she didn't want to go back to Kindergarten today - and to make matters harder, her little friend from Kindergarten is on vacation all week, so it was like walking in new all over again for poor Georgia. I just wanted to take her back home with me, poor thing.

Back to J&J's, she got to (finally) wear her Kyoko (and yes, I loved the one on the envelope so much, I that I copied it exactly) and she got many compliments on it and even told them that 'my mommy made it for me' - which made me smile all over.

She did not, however, want to take pictures, and our weather has gone nasty grey, so I had to pull out the flash:

::front view::

::half back view::

::side view::

As for the Kyoko? It was fun to make, but used a ton of bias trim and the instructions called for one package of pre-made bias trim, without saying how much is in a package...so I took a guess and ordered 3 yards of bias trim and just barely had enough for the top. I had to stretch it in the end. That meant I couldn't make the pants and I was so frustrated, I made them down to the bottoms and waited on the new pack of bias trim I had ordered. However, I stupidly ordered only 1 yard and was enough to trim one pant leg, not two. Frustration. I really wanted this outfit for the first day of J&J's. So on Cara's suggestion, I sliced the trim in half lengthwise and tried attaching it along with some dark brown bias trim, but that left me with a horridly ragged edge. I ended up gluing down the edge and the pants were passable for the first day, but I need to get busy and order some more trim and then redo them for the future. Pooh.

And Dean, always adorable, just waking up:

Purple and Plummy

All together, I have made 4.75 pairs of Sophie 3-way pants for Georgia. That last pair, that will make it five? I'm waiting (and waiting) on some pretty kidcheck bias trim to arrive before I can finish them. Anyway, yesterday I put the purple jeans on Georgia and paired them with her purple vest from Grandma last Christmas (which she REFUSED to wear and which is now a bit on the short side, but tough) and thought she looked so cute, I couldn't resist pictures.

::must you take even more pictures of me? fine, but I'll kind of look at you, but I will not smile::

And the whole outfit, including her new shiny purple sneakers:

And a close-up of the button:

Dean was hanging out during the photo shoot because he had to go with us to Kiga in order to go on to BK. That denim jacket is such a fabulous staple, but he also has on a cute timberland ensemble underneath, just take my word for it!

As for G - she tends to be a bit cranky and mean when she gets home from Kiga, it takes lunch and most of Dean's nap for her to come back down to her normal self again. Yesterday afternoon she had a great time with Emma at the playground, though not such a great time with Arthur, who threw sand at her and got it in her eyes. Georgia takes it badly when other kids tell her 'no', push her, or throw things at her.

Today, when I picked her up from Kiga, she was already inside, standing near the coat racks. She didn't know I was coming because I didn't have to ring the buzzer to get in, and so her teacher didn't know I was there either, which can only mean something had happened and her way of dealing with it was apparently to wait inside until we came - which had to be soon. She greeted us both happily and was heading over to get her stuff when another little girl came in. Georgia saw that girl and burst into tears: That little girl PUSHED me! and she built up into a mess of hysterics until she was lying on the floor half in my lap while I tried to comfort her and calm her down.

We got her stuff together and took her out to say goodbye to the teacher (not going to make that mistake again!) and her teacher said she'd had a perfectly fine morning and that she is adapting wonderfully, she didn't know what was wrong except that sometimes kids just lose it when their Mom's arrive. Also, I think Georgia was pretty tired. However, she did also tell me that a little girl took away her red horsie and something else as well. So yah, I think it was a rough morning for some reason. And I am really hoping that the girl who pushed her down did not do it on accident, that they maybe bumped into each other...but I suppose I'll never know. I can say that the girl who supposedly pushed her is much, much smaller than Georgia...

Whatever happened today, the teacher insists she is doing well, yesterday I was assured that she and another little girl had become great friends (although with girls, friendships sometimes last all of a few hours before they turn on each other, so I don't know how much I can trust that this friend will be a long-term friend!) and that it was a wonderful thing that it had happened so easily and quickly. Hm. I did ask her today if she had played with Annabel and she said she had, but she also refers to Annabel as 'the girl' until I ask her for a name, so it could also have been Annabel who took the red horsie...and unless I become a fly on the wall, I guess I'll never know.

almost two new school kids and how to break a twin needle

Dean started Bunchkids this morning, and I mistakenly thought that Georgia started Jack & Jill's this morning. I had prepared her for a new situation, new people, new things, had her backpack ready, her lunch ready, and sent her off with Sven, only to have him come back, extremely irritated, that no one was there. A quick call to the woman who runs it and oops, J&J's starts next week. So we'll go through the whole thing again a week from today.

Dean however, did start Bunchkids this morning, so I asked both him and Georgia for pictures:

Come on little brother, over here, stand next to me for pictures...!

He' still so innocent, no idea what's to come, Bunchkids is old hat, but without Sissy? That's a whole different story.

This picture cracks me up, it's not posed at all. look at their facial expressions!

The two of them played a bit until it was time to go - Dean was so happy, playing with Sissy:

Dean was excited to get in the bike and go, though he didn't understand why he was sitting in the middle of the carrier and kept asking for Sissy...even to the moment we arrived at the Kindergarten where BK takes place and he was crawling out of the carrier, he was asking for her. Remember, he's never been to BK by himself, he's always gone with Georgia. I stopped him long enough for a photo (he insisted on the mickey hat, even though it's too small because he recently learned how to say: Mickey MOUSE! and loves MM). You can see by his face, that he's getting concerned:

We walked together up to the doors, he wheeled his Manny backpack all the way, and then stood uncertainly at the door while we waited to go in. Cathy met us and greeted him warmly, which of course sent him into hysterics. He eventually settled down, after his houses hoes were on and he was even playing when I waved good-bye to him. He freaked out and screamed. But never you mind, they took him right into their arms and calmed him down. He was one of four today, and when Georgia and I arrived to pick him up, he was happy as a clam and didn't even want to go!

Georgia, fully prepared, if not a little scared for her first day of J&J's, which turned out to be a bomb as it doesn't start until next Monday...Oops:

Dressed to the nines in her shirred sundress and new jeans. The pockets are lined with the same lime polka as the sundress, which was originally supposed to be a top (remember?). So it's a tad long, but never mind. As for teh jeans, that's how to break yourself three twin needles, no, four! Just pull up the stretchy denim and stupidly force the needles through seams that are too thick. Last weekend (just last weekend?) I broke two sets of twin needles on the purple jeans. Yesterday, I broke two more on these. Although, in my defense, I have NO idea why, but my needles are getting stuck in the machine and I have to yank them out with pliers. The firs twin needles I broke absolutely REFUSED to come out and I ended up pulling the twin part of the needles out from the bit that goes in the machine. pooh. I don't know why my machine wants to eat the needles!

waist, pocket and button details:

vent detail:

After dropping Dean off, I went shopping quickly and when I got home, was finally going to grab my breakfast when I heard Sven's key in the door. He was back with Georgia and at first, I feared she refused to stay at J&J's, but it turns out, there was no one there. He was very angry, rightfully so I guess, I just assumed J&J's started today, as BK did and Kindergarten did last week. What I did not know, is that the regular school kids don't start until next week. So my bad. Georgia spent the morning with me and then got to pick up Dean and see Cathy and Louise again. She really just wanted to play, poor kid!

And here's Dean, two hours after being put down for his nap, refusing to budge, even when the shades and door were opened:

hmm, 2:30pm, maybe I should check on him and make sure he's up!

Jenna Hats

Both kids reading books while waiting for Daddy to get dressed so we could go shopping and eat Chinese. Dean is dressed to the nines in a darling Catmini shirt from the Vincens boys and Georgia in her new jumper, that I love more every time she wears it! However, the point of the picture, was because both kids donned 'jenna hats' against the very crisp fall weather that morning. Georgia's has holes for pigtails, but she no longer has pigtails...and the hat is a bit big still, but so cute. Dean's Jenna hats don't fit anymore, so he's moving on to hand-me-downs from Georgia. Thankfully, Jenna's hats are fairly gender-neutral and so he happily donned the jenna pea hat (as Georgia called it), since it fit him, and is too small for Georgia. I loved the two of them sitting there in their jenna hats, reading a book. They are just too cute.

A happy preschooler!

Someone was excited this morning. I know, because when I told her she had to get up and it was not even 7am yet (though almost), she said: "Mommy, I'm TIRED" and then got up anyway. She usually crawls back under the covers and refuses to move.

::eating breakfast::

Not a whole lot to tell, she got up, wanted breakfast, gave me a hard time about putting on her jumper, and then I told her she could wear her new boots and she was ready to go.

I finished the jumper last night and told her she could wear it. We also tried it on last night, and she fussed, but she doesn't want to take it off now, and it's almost 1pm, so I guess it was a good outfit. The outfit itself was a challenge from Mom, who saw it at the fabric store and had to get it. it's New Look 6639, a cute cord jumper with a knit tee and leggings - although she only got fabric for the jumper and tee, not the leggings. The challenge, I suppose, was to work both with cord and with a knit fabric, both things I had never done. I have to say, it was beyond fun, sewing that tee, and the jumper came together quickly as well - a simple, fun pattern. It even has button holes and little flower buttons.

Georgia and I were ready around 7:30, teeth brushed, dressed and Georgia ready to bounce off the walls. It was a bit harder getting Dean out of bed...

In the end, Sven was the last one ready, so at 7:45, we headed downstairs to take pictures while waiting for him.

::new backpack::

::she's ready!::

Finally, Sven made it downstairs with the cherry on top, her zuckertüte. This made her break out into a face-cracking grin, and sent Dean into hysterics, because he didn't get one. Thankfully, Sven was thinking ahead and brought him a bag of gummi bears to quiet him.

And finally, we got to head out. I had asked Georgia at breakfast whether she wanted to bike or walk, and she wanted to ride in the car. Hm. She decided to walk, tomorrow she'll be biking, the walk was a bit too long.

When we arrived, Georgia's teacher came out and let Georgia choose which of the free spots she wanted for her shoes, jacket etc., and then left us to get her changed into house shoes.

I think she was starting to get a teeny bit overwhelmed, especially after her teacher had talked to her (and she was too shy to answer).

After her shoes were on, we headed to her classroom (she's in the hedgehog group) and took care of paperwork. We asked Georgia whether or not I should stay, and she said I needed to stay, but not five minutes later, she had spied the plastic animals and was gone.

She soon coaxed Dean up the stairs to look at the animals with her, and when her teacher had attention for us again, she was surprised to see Georgia had taken off and asked whether I thought we could leave. I did. So she told us to come back at 10am and pick Georgia up.

The only tears in our family this morning, were Dean's, when he had to leave Sissy behind! She had a good morning, although she told me later that she spilled her juice and got another girl's pants wet. She is ready and excited to go back again tomorrow, but does not want to stay the whole time, she wants to come home early again.

Someone Loves her New Pants...

That's almost all I have to say about it! No, really. Sophie 3-way pants from Modkidboutique. Love them. Sven doesn't. He doesn't like the bell or the kick pleats and apparently thinks that Georgia is going to be made fun of for wearing so many hand-made clothes instead of the same clothes that everyone else is wearing.

Look at that smile. She did not want to take the pants off, and she got to choose the button herself. I think she's lucky to have some fun clothes that aren't the same as everyone else.

Never mind. I got around to doing two of the four pairs of pants today. I've been waiting for needles, but as it turns out, I could have done the cords a week ago, as I didn't need special needles. I just wanted to do them all in one go, since doing the same pattern four times in a row? It gets quicker and easier each time because you know what you're doing and there is no reading what to do next in between.

So the orange plaid cords have a vent and the red cords have a kick pleat. The kick pleat took forever and I worked on it too late at night and made a million mistakes. For the third pair, which is a purple pinstripe denim, I decided to forgo the pleat and the vent and just make them a pair of (boring) pants. I thought it would be okay, because they are a purple pinstripe! They actually came along brilliantly and I was doing the hemming (hemming pants is just not fun) when one of the double needles snapped. Oh no! I was trying to figure out what that had happened, while cleaning up the mess. It wasn't until I looked at the sewing machine that I realized it was my own stupid fault for not putting the needle position back to 0 after sewing a zigzag stitch.

Ah, but my stupidity continued. Firstly, I tried to finish the hem by sewing two rows of stitches with one needle. I can't sew a straight line to save my life, so of course it was a mess and I ended up spending half an hour ripping both seams out. And then I thought I'd use the other double needle, the one I had used on the cords. Yes, that needle was not meant for denim, yes, I did bend one of the needles and have to scrap another needle, my sewing machine is now clacking something awful and I ended up finishing the jeans with double sewing, trying my best to keep the seams straight. No pictures of those.

So I've ordered new needles and the jeans are going to have to wait another week. In the meantime, i did make the knit tee and except that I fear it will be too short, I really like it, and was surprised how easy and fun it was to sew.

On to the cord jumper and Georgia will be nicely outfitted for her start in preschool...

Playground Sanity

That's right, the playground saved my sanity last week. On Wednesday and Thursday, we left the house around 9:30 and stayed there until lunchtime. It's amazing, what Leon and Georgia can do with their time when the playground stays empty and their imaginations run free. They played game after game, got filthy in the sandbox, ran up and down the slide, swung and spun on the merry-go-round. I read.

Dean, however? This is his routine: no matter whether he is first in the gate or last, Leon and Georgia always race past him and get to the swings first. The swings are the only thing Dean wants to do. However, he has finally come to terms with the fact that he cannot beat them, so he goes over to the bench, climbs up and waits for them to finish.

::on the bench::

::almost my turn?::

::now?::

::mine!::

::mommy, please put me on the swing and push me, no more pictures!::

And this is where he stays for at least 30 minutes, if not longer.

Simplicity 2614 - this one's for me

Firstly, can I just say it's nearly time for the Fall TV Lineup? And this year, I'm actually excited for it to start because of the internet? Because there are random people out there who put all those tv shows online for me to watch? *smile* And Sidereel has a complete list of every show and its start date up. Only, I'm missing a few. I know Lost doesn't start up again until January, but what about V? Wasn't that supposed to be starting this Fall? Never mind. On to sewing.

On Friday night, I finally decided to pull out the polyester (ugh) fabric I got on sale and try my hands on the Simplicity 4097 pattern for pants. I wanted to try pants, I figured pants (especially ones with a simple side zipper and twill tape, had to be a quick project with good results, right? Of course, when I ordered the zipper-pack of surprise styles and colors, i was hoping to get a pant-size black zipper in the pack - that seemed not too much to ask, I mean a black zipper? that's basic. But of course, there wasn't one in the pack. So I when I got to the zipper insert, I went ahead and used a lavendar one instead. I also managed to sew up the left side where the zipper was meant to be inserted and had to put it in the right. I'm not sure if that's the reason I couldn't make the zipper go under the fabric or not, but I didn't care. I hemmed them as narrow as possible and was done. I think I will make them again, but longer. These pants are too short for me. But enough blah blahs. I like the pants. they're comfy. They're polyester, which I don't like, but they were cheap and look good. So there you go.

Now, all photos of me are iffy. Remember, I'm the photographer, but photographing myself? That needs work.

::the zipper::

::my attempt at a front-shot, we really don't have any decent mirrors around here::

And on Saturday afternoon, I pulled out (finally) the threads pattern with that one blouse that I wanted to make more than any other pattern I'd bought. I had originally set it aside because I had bought the wrong size, but then I went ahead and made it in a size 14 after all. Probably, a size 16 in the length would have been better, but it's too late for that now.

So I pulled out a brown poplin cotton I got (on sale, everything on sale) and started snipping. I finished it Saturday evening and the response I got was: the sleeves don't look finished and it's crooked, isn't it? Thanks so much for the support.

you get one full-on shot of my big mug and the others will be cropped, because it's about the shirt, not my mug, right?

:: front view::

:: mirror-attempt at a side view::

::one more::

And on Sunday, after fighting all morning with the ruffler I bought (stupid, stupid, stupid), I finally decided to just bite the bullet and pull out the satin fabric I bought, and then hated when I got it. The problems of online shopping...Anyway, the plan was to use the satin to make the same blouse as above, but with different sleeves and a tie and collar accent. I like the shirt, and the basic design is ridiculously simple - I'd recommend it to every beginner, it even has extra bodice pieces for different cup sizes, not just the b-cup that comes in every pattern. So with the addition of big sleeves and a tie and collar, I had one thing new to play with, and then working in a satin fabric, that was the true test of my abilities.

I used an elastic-polyester satin that slipped and slid and frayed quite a bit, but will probably be generally easier than the satin I will need to use for Georgia's Halloween costume. It was a practice run in using satin. I can't say I'm looking forward to working with it again on G's costume, especially as I realize now, this satin was a bit different than a normal one. the pin holes disappeared and I can iron on the right side and wash it.

But moving on and enough blah blahing - right? This time, I had Georgia take my picture. She needs to work on focusing...ha!

::side view::

::most of the front...::

::this would be my favorite shot, if it were only in focus!::

And now Dean is up from his nap, both kids want to swim and i have a huge box of fabrics to go open...

Dr. Horrible's Sing Along Blog

Why did no one tell me of this? Why did I only just hear of it, and through Cakewrecks? I was totally missing out. I mean, when it came out, it was even being shown internationally over Hulu! Now Hulu is closed (as usual) and i had to nab it off youtube (thank goodness for youtube). I mean, this is Joss Whedon and a musical, and a villain who is a hero, and and and, I love it! Even Sven peaked over my shoulder to see just what I was watching. Debating now, get the three acts off iTunes, or the DVD with extras from Amazon - which means I'd have to wait. Hmmmm.

(go ahead, hit the play button, you might laugh. and if you already know about Dr. Horrible, then shame on you for not telling me!)

And if I could keep up with this blog, here are some pictures you would have seen two weeks ago:

::throwing a bit of a tantrum because Leon has the Thomas Book,
which he heard Sissy say was his, so why does Leon have it anyway?::

::reading another monster::

::reading his Thomas book after Leon finished::

::gratuitous shot of those big eyes...::

And of course, while uploading those, I found pictures from last week that I wanted to share as well. Back to Photoshop!

And Life Goes On

A least, I'm trying to convince myself of that. I just want to update you on my continued pech, Satchel was born yesterday. So not only will his book come a good six weeks too late, and the other half of the giftie most likely won't fit, I stupidly put a Virgo page in his baby book, never dreaming, with a due date of August 20th, and a sister who came two weeks late, that he'd come out a roaring Leo. Ah, but he did. So he's got a Virgo page, his sister, who is a Scorpio, has a Libra page and well, I suppose life goes on. Congrats to Jessica and Josh, now a family of four.

Just Call Me Stupid

Because I am, and I know it, so you might as well know it too. Rundown? Sure. Firstly, my friend announced that #2 was on the way sometime back in late winter, and instead of getting on that baby gift, I ignored the announcement and promptly forgot the due date. That meant, of course, that I was scrambling last week to finish the gift and have it sent out for printing so that I could send it off to Chicago without further ado. And in the meantime, I whipped up a couple extra goodies to add to the box, I mean my fingers flew so fast, I ended up gashing a hole in my hand and needing to get stitched, as you already know. So Yesterday, the gift arrived all shiny and shrink-wrapped (and stinking of shrink wrap, btw, and I did take it out of the wrap so I could write a little inscription inside) and I got excited, finished up the cards, wrapped it all up in its shipping box and sent it off with Sven to the P.O. this morning with the instructions that: it needed to be there last week.

And this is where I get stupid, well that is, it would be if I weren't already all the time. Sven didn't want to take the detour to the post office this morning (I had already sent him on Monday with a return) and let me know it. He was not happy about it, and I felt bad because I had to get that darn stitch out and despite having an appointment for 8:30am this morning, in order to get a less-than-two-minute procedure taken care of, I sat in there until 9:15, waiting while every other person went in before me, whether they'd come in after me or not. So I'm fuming when I get home and feeling extremely bad for sticking Sven with all three kids and making him so late for work and feeling more rotten about sending him to the P.O. as well. I can't go myself with three kids, I can only transport two of them on the bike and none of them is big enough to walk. Plus, getting anywhere with Leon on foot is the very definition of patience.

So Sven took off with the box, and the knowledge that I personally, have never filled out any forms for a package to the U.S. and that well, it needed to get there yesterday.

Ten minutes later he calls me and asks me how to fill out the customs form. What? Customs form? Since when do you need to fill that out? He didn't know, didn't care, just wanted to know what the package was worth. Fine. Not five minutes later he's calling again wanting to know if the package needs to go airmail or normal. Red lights going off? Bells ringing in your head? I wish they had in my confused head. Because I was fixated on 'normal' and being typically thick and stupid.

So yes. Points for stupidity rocketing out the roof this morning, as Jessica's welcome baby gift heads out on the slow boat for America and will arrive sometime in the next SIX WEEKS.

BANGING HEAD ON DESK NOW, trying not to cry.

My other spurt of stupidity has to do with sewing (you know, that thing I can't get enough of these days, despite all the stupid mistakes I make?). I apparently cannot sew a straight line, and I especially can't because I can't cut a straight line either (admits a former paper scrapbooker). And everything I do turns out wonky. period. So if you receive a gift from me, expect wonkiness. Expect patchwork when you were supposed to be getting elegant, and try - oh try - not to be too disappointed.

I think that I should stick to digital scrapbooking and sitting quietly in my computer chair where all I have to find, is the patience not to throw my computer out the window for being so stubbornly slow.

I can't stay away

Obviously, despite a maimed hand, I can't stay away. Especially when it's a question of "what to do with that half-hour time before the kid's get up, try and squeeze in a quick blog, or start a project I won't be able to finish?" Yah, a quick blog sounds better to me, than starting something I can't finish, since I have this problem of not finishing a project if I can't complete it right away. Which may also be my biggest fault in regards to sewing. I sew too fast. I want my projects to be finished the minute I start them. So I make many, many, many mistakes and when the project is finally finished (in less than 4 hours), It tends to have things like wonky seams, or asymmetrical sleeves due to bad gathering, or the bias tape is sewn in wrong, because I was too lazy and impatient...but it doesn't matter if Georgia is wearing it, right? She won't know. ahem.

So anyway, the hand is on the mend, despite my best efforts to hinder the healing process by not stopping with my project-pile. I spent Saturday before the E.R. with my hole-y hand in a band aid making one project, and then spent all day Sunday working on the Mermaid Dress with my stitched up hand. Turns out, that wasn't the best idea and on Monday, I had to tape my fingers together so that I would stop moving them so much.

Anyway, the Mermaid Dress:

::very unwilling to pose::

I call it the mermaid dress because it is made out of mermaid fabric. Underwater Sisters from Heather Ross's Mendocino line for Free Spirit, which I've linked in previous posts and don't feel like doing now. The pattern is Simplicity 2677, which is a faux-wrap dress. I thought it looked cute when I bought it. Then I found the pattern reviews site and saw the mixed reviews for it and started re-thinking the whole thing. Plus, I wasn't ready to use bias tape yet. Never mind, after putting it off for weeks, I finally sat down and pulled it together, not without a little swearing, mind you. It was a very different sort of pattern from the previous dresses I'd made for Georgia, and I actually don't like how it fits her all that much, but maybe by the time she actually grows into it (I made a size 5 again, and it's loose all around), I'll like it. I do love the fabric though. Mermaids, mermaids, mermaids. *smile*

I went too fast when I made it. Let's not discuss the number of stupid, stupid mistakes I made, all for not paying attention and being short on patience. Sadly, I didn't notice one rather large mistake until she was wearing it yesterday, and I'm not sure I have the drive to fix it now. I gathered the right sleeve too much, so it poofs way out of control and is too short in the back, something only noticeable from the back, except for the poof, you can see that in the picture above.

After finishing the mermaid dress, which was a short break from another project that I put on hole (smart move, I may add) until I had more information on how to do it, I went back to that project, finished it and suddenly had a crying Georgia on my hands. She wanted it. She actually wanted something I had made, and it wasn't for her! So I promised to make her one as soon as the current one (which I can't share as it's a gift for someone who reads my blog) was finished. And so that's what we did yesterday, we made hers. She was very happy. When she saw me start cutting hers out, she said: "are you making MINE?!" "is that for ME?" and she was so overcome with emotion, she could hardly get the words out. That was sweet.

And yesterday, I was finally able to shower again, and get my hand wet, although it still is a bit sore and raw and gives me some niggling trouble, making it hard to do any serious house work (hm).

And lastly, because he is so darn cute:

::He has such huge eyes, it's really a crime not to get those catch lights

on film whenever and wherever possible.::

::busy learning the ins and outs of the remote::

*tap tap*

just checking in quickly to say: I'm still here, but injured enough that blogging for the next few days (if not week?) is out of the question, as I can't type easily. That's right, I am an idiot, and clumsy. not a good combination. anywho, due to my stupidity in not letting a pair of extremely sharp sewing scissors simply fall to the ground, I had to reach out and grab them so that the very sharp points of the scissors caused a gaping hole to open up between my pinky and ring fingers. after the shock was over and a lot of crap (like five hours of it), we finally went to the e.r. where I got the hole stitched. I am now sitting here with my fingers taped together to keep me from moving them too much (like when typing and needing to use the backspace and the letter 'p'....) and am going to sign off until I can type as fast as I think.

until then!

Sunbonnet Sue meets the BBQ

Okay, not really, truly. I mean, she only got the new dress a tad bit dirty near the hem, which is pretty amazing considering she spent the whole later afternoon and evening running around the yard with Leon and Dean, and ate BBQ! But yes, she did wear the new dress (which is something more akin to an Easter dress than a summer dress) the evening we BBQ'd.

::yes, I bribed her with the white clack-clack shoes in order to get pictures.
Even let her wear them IN THE BEDROOM::

So this dress is Simplicity pattern No. 2683 (and every time I go and look for that pattern and the number, I get distracted by about 100 other patterns that just look sooooo pretty...and this blog entry may never get written!) from the end of June, when sewingpatterns.com was having a big Simplicity sale (all patterns were $1.99) and I was in search of dresses that would be more flattering to Georgia than the standard empire waist with full skirt coming out under her arms. This was in fact, my very first pattern purchase (well, that one and 9 others) and this was before I'd even sewn one dress with Mom (naughty, I know). And then after I had purchased them and was waiting (I waited over a month for them) I started buying fabrics with those dresses in mind.

::I haven't been able to get her to spin since she fell down spinning too fast,
she finally spun today, the skirt has a great span::

I think I was just browsing when I discovered the Mendocino Mermaids by Heather Ross (in pink, and this will be important!) and decided Georgia needed a mermaid dress (she loves Ariel) and while grabbing that, I found this lovely sunbonnet sue small floral from Windham fabrics, and fell in love. Really. And so I pulled out the envelope backing for pattern 2683 and ordered the amount of fabric necessary. Only, I didn't order enough for lining, because I wasn't thinking ahead and didn't yet know what lining was for...When Mom got here, the fabric arrived as well and then we went lace and thread-shopping. I could not wait for that pattern to arrive. The reasons it took so long were due to understocking on sewingpattern's part, and my idiocy in having the pattern sshipped to Mom, thinking they'd arrive in time for her to bring them with her. I ended up having to wait for her to return home and ship them on to me (thanks, Mom!).

On Thursday, the envelope arrived! The pattern was here! I could get started. together, the kids and I pinned the pattern pieces to the fabric and I cut it out. I didn't actually get started on it until Friday morning, early though, and was in the midst of it when Andrea came to pick up Leon. She took the opportunity to look at the pattern and tell me what all she would NOT do (leave off the lace, not do the gathering on the sleeves, in fact, she'd do the dress that didn't have sleeves, etc.). I was back and forth on the sleeves as was anyway. They were to be lined. I didn't have lining in the first place, and had already cut up the rest of the crib sheet in order to line the bodice. I went back and forth, read reviews (no mention of sleeve lining) and asked Mom. I had decided against lining up until the moment I gathered the sleeves and realized just why they needed lining...So I squeezed a couple linings out of the very last scraps of that crib sheet. Just made it. whew. Thank goodness for large seam allowances!

The dress was finished late Friday night and ready to be worn on Saturday, which is when I realized just how dressy it is, and how perfect it would have been for Easter...Never mind. When Georgia got up Saturday, she took no notice of the dress (this new clothing thing must be getting out of hand...) and when I asked if she was going to wear it, she said: tomorrow. So I said, okay, tomorrow...after your bath (while on the way to her bath). And of course she wore it. I even convinced her to spin in it.

Anyway, the pattern was very similar to the green and red dresses from simplicity that I did with Mom, the main differences were the square neckline and the gathered, puffed sleeves. I had issues with the zipper, but otherwise it came together nicely. There is a tie and band across the front, the band was cut on the bias, which was new and fun, but I had trouble figuring out how it was attached, and had to redo it and ended up losing a bit of the gathering. I also wish that I had bought a contrasting fabric to make the ties with, but nevermind. It's done. The sunbonnet sue fabric is still lovely, but it's rather pale and forgetful, and wrinkles something awful.

What's your take on it?

::the dress::

::bodice and fabric detail::

::and she's gone::

And although I was against this evening activity, we did end up BBQing with Andrea, Leon and Agron. Why was I against it? Well, five straight days of Leon (two of which were full days, not just the mornings) had me so annoyed, irritated and sick of the boy, I really felt the need of a weekend off. A weekend with NO Leon. Thankfully though, he went to his grandparents today (and tomorrow) and while with his mother and father and while outside, he ended up being slightly less irritating than when trapped inside four walls alone with him...

::an unfortunately typical sight:
Georgia scratching at her arms and belly.
she has some kind of awful rash or dry skin
or we don't know what that causes her to scratch until she bleeds::

Georgia has been watching the older girls at the playground swing while standing up for months now. This evening, she decided to be daring and give it a try. I looked up, and there she was, standing on the swing. I gave her the first push so she could see what it was like to swing while standing, and after that she got quite good at swinging herself and climbing off and on the swing.

::climbing onto the swing::


::swinging::

A German BBQ means the men stand around one tiny BBQ and pack on as much different kinds of meat they can fit. They then proceed to stand there the whole evening and dole out portions as they are ready. It never occurs to them to get the grill piping hot, put all the meat on, and then everyone can sit down and eat together. Nor would it ever do, to have just one or two main types of meat, that would then be finished at the same time...cultural differences!

::ummmmmm, food::

::who ate like a champ tonight? That's right, Dean did. bring on the Ćevapčićis!::

::more please!::

And what do we do when we've eaten so much our stomach is about to explode? Loll around on the grass, of course!

::oh dear, says Mommy...that head is still a bit asymmetrical::

A little Dean Lovin'

Have you noticed the extreme lack of Dean in the blog lately? I did. I mean, the truth is, I've only taken pictures three times since August started anyway, and they've all been of Georgia modeling new clothes. So. Yesterday I decided it was time to get some shots of the short one, and that's when I realized that he's hit that toddling phase of Never. Standing. Still. Oh yah, and refusing to look at the camera.

::on the go::

Not only that, he's hitting some major crazy milestones that make me blink in surprise on a daily basis. Ever since his sleeping schedule got back on track, my sweet boy reappeared with upgrades!

Two nights ago, while trying to put him to bed, he wouldn't stop babbling. Eventually, I realized that the babbling was not babbling at all, he was singing, and he wasn't just singing nonsense, that was a real song, with bits of melody even. Can you guess it? It went something like this:

Inka-Inka uppa buppa

Yup, Twinkle, twinkle little Star! He also sings the ABC Song and runs around yelling: Ah-B-C! Ah-B-C! Ah-B-C! at the top of his lungs.

His explosively developing language skills also blow us away. He has a big sister to model after, on who had no one herself and who has been slow in that area, so he truly surprises us daily with the amount of language he has. The other day, he was sitting on the counter, where I had left him because I couldn't carry him and make lunch. At some point, he wanted to get down, so he called: Mommy, down. Down Mommy. Mommy? Down! (I wasn't paying attention) RUNTER Mommy! Runter! Yes. He switched to German, in the hopes that I'd react. Stinker. Of course, he also says runter when he wants up, so he's obviously got work to do!

I was sitting at the computer this week and he came in to see me with a stuffed monkey. He climbed into my lap (that's another thing he's started, insisting on doing everything himself, from climbing into and out of his car seat, to clearing off his own plate and taking it to the counter). He held the monkey up to me and said: Keess, Mommy! Kees! Then held the monkey up to me. So I kissed the monkey and then he gave me a kiss. Then it started over again: Kees, Mommy! to the monkey and as soon as the monkey got a kiss, then I got one from him.

The boy can swing. I mean, he's been able to sit on the swing and be pushed since he was around 18 or so months (way to trump both Sissy and Leon!) but recently he's insisted on being pushed higher and higher: push, Mommy! MORE push! And here's where the problems come in: every single playground has two (count them, TWO) swings. Not an issue when it's just one kid, or a kid and his big sissy (who by the way, can now swing herself and it is nigh impossible to get her off a swing). However, add the babysit kid to the mix and you've got three, three kids who all want to swing on the playground where there are only two swings. And two of those three kids have longer legs and run faster. Where am I going with this? Yup, poor Dean gets left behind every time and screams bloody murder until one of the big kids gets tired of swinging and lets him have a turn.

::no, this isn't the 'i want to swing' scream, this is actually,
a "GIVE ME BACK MY HAT" scream
because I removed it in an attempt to get pictures,
but it's the same face::

::my 'at::

A while back, i was holding Dean in the entry-way and he was looking at the pictures hanging there. He says: "baby, baby!" Baby....DEAN!" as he finally made the connection of that particular baby and himself. Since then, he has been saying his own name, and referring to himself by name as well, whether it's pointing out a picture, or asking if he can have a turn.

He climbs everything and runs like the wind. Also loves to leap onto the couch, climb out of his high chair, onto the bed from the foot-end, and generally get himself into messes. Yesterday, he found a pair of Georgia's panties and decided he needed to wear them. As they were used, and had Cinderella on them, I suggested we get a clean pair (who am I to turn him down some fun?). So we went to the bedroom and got a pair of Elmo panties, ones that never fit Georgia, because she didn't get out of diapers until oh, three months ago?! Dean was so excited about the Elmo, he wore them proudly over his shorts and ran right out to show off to Sissy.

He's gone vehicle-crazy. AUTO! AUTO! AUTO! He still likes babies, and loves to wear clack-clack shoes, but give him an AUTO! or pass a tractor and he's in heaven. BAGGER! Noch eins! BAGGER! BAGGER! BAGGER! and of course, every airplane or helicopter that flies overhead catches his attention. Georgia likes to get in on the action too, whenenever she sees a bus, or an airplane etc., she yells: BUS, Dean!! Bus!! And because Dean get ssuch a reaction from us when he yells: Doggie! or Kitty! or Gock-gock/gockie, she tends to copy him.

::he'd like to jump, but hasn't gotten that bit of coordination down yet::

Back to language, he is a bit of a copy-cat, and he's good at it. He will copy any noise he hears (if he wants to). Yesterday morning, he was standing in the kitchen when a car drove by outside and honked: BEEEP! Without a moment of hesitation, he goes: NEEEEEEEEEP! His Daddy said 'gute nacht, Dean' last night and Dean popped back with 'Nacht!'.

I'm not saying he's perfect. Far from it. He has entered the stage of pre-two tantrums and he is stubborn. He stamps his feet, screams and causes big fat tears to roll down his cheeks. He screams a lot. He throws a fit before every single nap, and often before bed. Basically? He's a cuddly little stinky handful of boy.

the (unappreciated) sacrifice of the unicorns

If you are wondering where I've been and you know me even a little, you won't believe it when I tell you that I've been babysitting as a paid-favor to a friend. Because the truth is, I hate babysitting and have trouble with other people's kids. But there you go, Andrea had to return to work on the day Leon turned 3, and Leon happened to turn 3 in the summertime when it was impossible to put him in Kindergarten and ridiculous to think of finding actual daycare, that would cost more than she'd be making. So I stepped in (aren't I nice?). The point to all the rambling is: I have lost big chunks of time to do anything at all and I'm staying up until 1am to make up for it.

Yes, I stayed up until 1am last night because yesterday, while blog-hopping, I stumbled upon the cutest skirts and had to have one for Georgia. But you know I wasn't about to shell out $40 for it, even though the one I was ogling was just absolutely gorgeous. So instead, I spent the whole day shopping for the fabric she used, thinking I am smart enough to figure out how to make that skirt myself. Which just means, when all was said and done, I spent much more than $40 that would have given me a lovely skirt on various different fabric stores, because when you start searching for one thing, you get distracted by 10 other gorgeous things and you think: 1., I'm building my stash and 2., well I'm babysitting and earning a teeny bit of money, let's BLOW it!

So this is what happened: while looking for that specific material to make that specific skirt, I actually happened upon the pattern she might have originally used to create her very first darling flirty skirt. And I bought it. And then, after I was all finished with my other purchases, I happily downloaded (because it was a downloadable tutorial, no waiting for the mail!) the pattern and started envisioning Gerogia's very own apron skirt.

I ended up using my unicorn fabric (but I'll let you in on a secret, I ordered a whole new yard of it yesterday....) and pairing it with an orange polka and then recycled more of that old pillowcase to make the apron. Yes, I envisioned this skirt diferently. No, it doesn't really look like a Gock's Frock flirty skirt, yes, it's too long, the apron is too long, for some reason, the width of 60" does not work at all on Georgia as the elastic cinches the waist way too tight, and yes, I am all ready to sit down and try the whole project again with alterations. The one good thing about this skirt is that it is huge and will fit her for another 2-3 years I'd say, maybe longer than that even, if I were to remove the current elastic and insert a new, longer piece.

Enter babysitting. I spent all morning at the playground, made lunch and then started laundry and got Dean down for a nap. No time to play. However, I did get a package, a package that cost me nearly $40 to ship and then got taxed in customs for another $30! sheesh.

Anyway, that package contained my first bits of Christmas presents, and I got all excited to sit down and start laying things out when I remembered I have to wash, dry and iron it all first. Bummer. That would be the reason I was doing laundry today (even though it's Wednesday!). And then I sat down and looked at the pattern requirements and realized that I needed not just ANY interfacing, but a specific firm, heavyweight interfacing that I couldn't get just anywhere and so ended up internet-searching a supplier in Germany instead of editing the pictures of the unicorn-skirt. But the worst thing that happened, was when I held all four fabrics together in the daylight and realized that one of them didn't match the others. Noooo! So yes, more internet shopping this evening with a frantic note to the shop owner asking whether the fabric I was ordering matched the fabrics I already owned and if not, please suggest? She insists they match perfectly, I'm having to trust her and just wish I could shop for lovely fabric in person whenever I wanted...

And in between that shopping spree (which was quite modest in comparison to yesterday) and cleaning up from lunch, we all biked (yes, biked) to Andrea's for a slightly harried, stressful few hours at their place for a change. The point of the ride being that I needed to bike it at some point to get a feel for the way and the time it would need and could therefore some day come visit without Andrea leading me (or driving me!). It worked. The ride isn't too long, isn't too stressful and as long as it's a lovely summer afternoon and not a frigid winter morning, I'm happy to make the ride.

And now finally, hours and hours later, here are the photos (such as they are) of a very unwilling Georgia. She loves horses, but hasn't discovered the magic of unicorns yet, so the unicorn fabric held absolutely ZERO appeal. She saw the skirt this morning and said: I WANT PINK! I have yet to make her something pink (bad Mommy). It took some force to put the skirt on her, she refused to model it, twirl it (and it's got soooo much width for twirling!) or like it in any way. So much for making her a fabulous, flirty, twirly, magical UNICORN skirt...

::patiently (but unhappily) waiting for me to take the darn pictures

so she can go back to the swings - no modeling, no smiles, nothing::

::back view::

::no problems swinging, climbing, sliding or generally getting it dirty,
but she downright refused to twirl::

Smocked (ahem, shirred actually) Sundress

I've been longing to try my hand at a shirred sundress ever since I read how to do it on the Kuky Ideas blog. And then, a friend of Cara's made Juliet a darling shirred sundress and I was spurred on to actually order elastic thread. I was also inspired to look up Liberty of London, and then ran away screaming when I saw the prices. So now I had the thread and the tutorial, and the inspiration (though I knew I would never be able to make as beautiful a dress as Cendrine, whose blog I stalk for the inspiration, although I don't understand a word!) but no fabric that was calling to me. At least, I didn't think so.

::I think I have the cutest model,
some people cut off heads and faces to show off the outfit better,
but personally, that little face is all I want to see anyway::

Then I ran into a blog post about Heather Ross on the Martha Stewart show. I ran straight over and had a peak - even though I didn't know what it was about. What do you know? It was how to make a smocked sundress. That was it. I had to sit down and finally do it. Only you know I didn't. I couldn't have that yummy Liberty of London fabric and started seriously debating on using the Mermaid fabric, thanks to Martha Stewart GIVING everyone on the show a yard of Mendocino fabric in order to make their own smocked sundress! But I held off. I had the mermaid material for a different dress, and I'd stick to it. I'd even purposely bought more than a yard. So no point in wasting the extra for a dress that needed less than a yard.

Pooh.

Then Mom and I found some yummy lime green fabric with white polka dots. I thought that might be fun to make the smocked top (yes, by this time, I was planning on a top for Georgia, not a dress), but wasn't sure I wanted to use it on that, or maybe use it on a sundress pattern that Mom had brought...Well, I pulled out that pattern today (Saturday) and realized that it was reversible. And in order to make it, I'd need to get additional fabric and couldn't start a new project until I had additional fabric. Strike.

I spent most of the day moping because I wanted to try something, but nothing wanted me to try it. Finally, about five minutes before Sven and the kids came up from the backyard, I decided to iron that fabric and just start playing with the elastic. I re-watched the Heather Ross video, re-read the Kuky Ideas tutorial, measured Georgia's chest and once everyone was in bed and asleep, I got busy.

Guess what? I finished in under two hours. The straps took the longest. Of course, I write this late at night, Georgia has not tried it on, so it may not fit her, I'm not sure the straps are put on evenly and the shirring in the first two rows is nearly non-existant thanks to bobbin tension issues (as in, I had to figure out what tension was going to give me shirring and I turned it way too loose at first). However, it's cute. I'd like to try it again. Someday. When I have more elastic thread. One girl's top used quite a bit!

::detail view of shirring in front::

And because I wrote the previous bit last night, before Georgia woke up, I get to tell what happened this morning when she did. Firstly, I have a brat for a daughter, as in, she's spoiled and has now received so many new clothes in her life, handmade or store bought, that she no longer gets excited about the ones she does get. Hm, maybe I need to try that applique thing and make something with Cinderella on it to get her excited again.

So this morning: she refused to try the "top" on, she wanted to keep her pj's on. When I finally convinced her to try it on, she wanted it off immediately. I agreed, after I had marked where I thought the straps should go, because along with the badly shirred first two rows (which made the top flip over under her armpits), the front straps were under her arms instead of in front of her arms.

::Little Miss Bockig (recalcitrant)::

So I took it off, marked where I thought the straps might should go and then started pulling up the elastic in the first row with my seam ripper, carefully. It wasn't until I started pulling harder in order to tie knots (yes, lots of knots on the first inside row now) that I pulled the last bit of elastic totally OUT and had to re-sew. Oops.

And I did fight her to try it on one more time. She fussed and squirmed and took it off again. That was okay though, I still had straps to sew on, I was just checking the new shirring. When it was finished though, I put it on her, tied it and that was that. No more fussing. She's wearing it now and I have to say, big pat on the back, even Sven is impressed with the shirring. He said: you had to do this part too? As if I hadn't done it all last night with him in the room, and even had him get off the couch and hold the smock tight while I iron-shrunk the elastic! But never mind, a compliment is a compliment, and if Sven bothers to give me one, I'll take it!

::back view::

Oh, and the last thing worth mentioning? See if you can figure it out. Remember, I had intended to sew Georgia a top. Obviously I have no eye for how tall she is.

::front & side view::

::front shot - she wasn't actually cooperating with picture-taking,
she was ignoring me. I did my best::

::close-up of those darn ties::

::back & side view::

So did you figure it out? Yah. It is a dress after all.

And now off to shower, make beds and start lunch because I picked up some (fresh) chanterelle mushrooms at Aldi yesterday and some semmelknödel at Lidl for pfifferlinge in rahmsoße...And that means, this is probably the end to the productive-streak. Yesterday? I scrapped, I blogged, I sewed and I sat in the kiddie pool and played with the kids. Of course, I didn't do much cooking and absolutely no cleaning, but it was still a pretty productive day, wouldn't you say? We'll see what today holds.

Just what does she do with all those photos?

Especially considering how much wall space she doesn't have...

Well, in all honestly, they mostly just gather pixel dust in two different places on two different hard drives. But sometimes, I really do open up Photoshop and create. That's what I did today, after fighting the computer for the past week to get it back up to speeds that will allow me to use photoshop without tearing out all my hair...and after even more procrastination in the form of window-shopping....and then some frustration when I pulled out some bits here and there in an attempt to maybe start a new sewing project, only to realize that 1., I don't want a pleated purse with ikea birds on it, 2., i can't bear to cut into my Heather Ross Far Far Away Unicorn fabric (I have just barely half a yard of the lime) just yet, 3., I need another fabric for the lime green polka fabric if I'm going to use Mom's sundress pattern because it's a REVERSIBLE pattern, 4., the cheap ikea fabric with birds all over it is too thin after all, to make into a wrap skirt.

Anyway. So it's not fabulous, but it's a layout, and that's saying something considering my scrap-rate the past three months.

So yes, this is what she does with all those photos:

(click for full size and list of credits)

No Rest for the Weary: Another Afternoon in Munich

July 24, 2009

We arrived home from Legoland sometime around 10pm. So late, Georgia didn't even brush her teeth before falling into bed and sleeping. The next day however, we were up and off again. We went into Munich and the Englischer Garten, because Mom had suggested we go to the Chinesische Turm and see the surfers on the Isar. I inserted a trip to Starbucks and we were off.

Turns out, there really is a playground at the Biergarten. The things you don't realize when you don't have kids!

::Grandma with her Russ'n and Sven with his Weissbier::

So while we ate terribly expensive, tasteless food from the biergarten (a bit of planning might have aided us on this day, as we could have brought a picnic...), the kids played on the playground and Georgia hinged herself to another little german-american girl named Lily. Seriously, Georgia was so enamored with Lily, that she spent the rest of the day (after we'd all gone different ways) sadly saying: I lost Lily...Lily was playing on the playground and was sweet and friendly and possibly a tad bit older than Georgia. Lily's mother was German and her father was American - they live in America and were visiting.

::Georgia was unbelievably proud of herself for climbing up this ladder -
in the last picture, Lily is the one all the way at the top in the green shirt::


::Dean was totally digging hanging by his knees from the bar, Georgia refused to try::


::Georgia and Dean had to fight for their chance to sit on this see-saw the first time::


::The second time, Georgia wanted to go on the frog and Lily came running after saying
she wanted to go on it as well - good thing there was space for four kids on this see-saw!::

Georgia and Lily took off for the Tower when the music started and then Lily had to go back, as she had no shoes on. Georgia followed miserably after, not understanding where LIly had gone, and we perked her up with a ride on the carousel - again, I never knew there was a carousel at the Chinesische Turm!

"A children's carousel was put up near the tower in 1823, similar in design to the current one. By 1912 a replacement was needed, which is still in use. It was designed by the Schwabinger sculptor Joseph Erlacher and the decoration painter August Julier. Alongside the usual horses, the carousel has less expected creatures to ride, such as ibex, stork and flamingo.^[34] Its wooden roof and pillars were restored from 1979 to 1980.^[35]"

^{(from Wikipedia)}

^{::the carousel peeking out of it's house::}

Wondering what Georgia chose to ride? Of course she rode the Giraffe! And Dean sat on the motionless Stork (or was it a Flamingo?) right in front of her.

And then we really did lose Lily, as we had to go to the bathrooms and when we came back, they were gone. So we convinced a very upset Georgia to walk through the park all the way to the Isar, just so we could get videos of the surfers for Grandad.

::the ultimate tourist Biergarten - not too crowded that day::

::horse and buggy!::

::close-up of the horse - Georgia wouldn't touch it,
but she got as close as she could::

::the chinese tower::

::playing with a nasty crow's feather she found::

::getting tired::

On the way to the Wittelsbacherbrücke, we saw tight-rope walkers, the Monopteros, crazy people crossing the Isar at a spot with a very rapid current, any number of dogs, FKK sun bathers, normal bathers actually freezing their limbs in the bitty river, drummers, and finally the surfers themselves.

::Monopteros::


::tight-rope walker, there were at least two within 20 meters of each other::

::crazy people::


::watching the crazy people::

And then we finally, finally made it to the Wittelsbacherbrücke, with much mishap and mayhem, and a little girl who ended up sitting in the stroller because walking so far with nothing exciting to look forward to was too much for her. And so the first thing I have to share is the sign put up below the bridge:

::surfing and swimming is forbidden::

And Why is it forbidden? Because of life-threatening currents and built in water-components (exactly that which makes it possible to surf at this spot). However, Sven says that he believes the surfers are now officially allowed to surf in this sport without breaking any laws, but it truly is a spot of danger and only for experienced surfers who know they are risking their life...That said, there were at least ten of them out there that day, patiently waiting their turn - which came when the current surfer wiped out and was swept downstream with the current.

::waiting patiently::

I am not going to post any of the videos that Sven took, mostly because I find them tediously boring (as boring as it was to watch them live) and because I am too lazy to edit them for web purposes. Instead, I'll link you to Jorge Garcia's blog entry from his trip to Munich in April where he watched those same crazy surfers in much colder waters.

I think pictures of my own cutie watching those surfers are more fun anyway:

::yes, she was very bored::

And then we finally moved on through the Hofgarten, where Georgia was entranced by the pretty flowers, the games of botchy-ball and most of all, the quintet playing up front. She stood and listened through three pieces and even tossed money into the case. She was upset when they took a break and begged to stay longer so she could hear more...

::running to the fountain::

::momentarily dismayed by her inability to touch the water
before seeing the 2nd of four identical fountains and taking off again::

::still unable to reach the water, but now unperturbed, she ran off to find the music::

::Ludwigskirche as seen from the Hofgarten::

We finally made it to Odeonsplatz and Starbucks. Only Mr. Dean missed out because he conked out somewhere between watching the surfers and listening to a classical quintet in the Hofgarten.

::walking down the street at Odeonsplatz,
back to where we started and the car::

I've been working on this for two days straight and if I forgot something, or missed pictures, I'm kind of thinking: tough. It's gotta end somewhere!

Bunchkids comes to an End - for Georgia

It almost seems like yesterday, that I took my teeny little 21-month old to Munchkins to check it out, and see if it was something we really wanted to do. It was a very hot July morning and we walked down to the Putzbrunn Courthouse with Georgia in the stroller and me about 6 months pregnant with Dean (or NB, as I referred to him then). And then, a mere 2 months later, Georgia officially started her two year stint as a Munchkin - and later Bunchkid.

::September 14, 2007 - Georgia's first day at Munchkins::

And yesterday, for real this time, was her last day as a Bunchkid. And the worst thing about it? I didn't even realize it until she was walking out the door! I felt bad that I had nothing to give her 'teachers', and had done nothing to remember the event. So when Dean and I went to pick her up, I grabbed the camera, thinking to get a picture of her with Sally and whoever else was there that day. Georgia loves Sally, and Sally has been a wonderful figure in Georgia's Bunchkids career. Unfortunately, Sally wasn't there yesterday. I am sad about that, but in a way, having her last day with Cathy and Louise was fitting, as it was with Cathy and Louise that she started Munchkins two years ago. Both of them complied with the picture-taking, and even Georgia agreed to stand up on a chair between them and almost smile!

::with Cathy and Louise::

Although neither Cathy, nor Louise realized it was Georgia's last day, they weren't too sad about it because Dean will continue to come to BK and so they are bound to see Georgia off and on throughout the next year. In other words, it wasn't 100% goodbye, not yet.

As of September, Georgia will be going one day a week to Jack & Jill's - an English speaking preschool, and 4 days a week to the German Kindergarten down the street (but only for 4 hours). She's growing so fast...

Legoland Deutschland

July 23, 2009

This was both my favorite day of Grandma's whole visit and the best July 23rd in six years. It felt so good to spend Zane's birthday doing something we knew he would have enjoyed, and that his brother and sister also enjoyed. I've just not felt so happy and good on the 23rd since he was born.

The day almost didn't happen, however. Georgia woke up with some sort of stomach-ache. She was fine until she started eating her breakfast and then she sort of withered. She spent a good hour or more lying on her stomach, or slouched on the couch. So although we meant to get an early 8am start, in the hopes of being at Legoland shortly after it opened, we didn't make it until closer to 10am, and we arrived around 11:30am in the glaringly hot sunshine.

It took both Georgia and Dean some time to realize just what Legoland was and what the point of it was. The first thing we saw, were boats and a huge long line to get on one. We steered Georgia away from them and onto an airplane ride.

::Georgia & Sven::

::in line with an excited Dean, before backing out on him, bad Mommy::

I was originally in line with Dean, but when I got up and saw the ride, I didn't think it was one he could do. I thought he needed to sit in my lap, and that wasn't going to work, so I backed out and he cried. Grandma took pity on him, said she was taking him and well, she did.

::Grandma & Dean::

Of course, Georgia wanted to go again when she saw Dean on the planes, so I took her in line and Grandma and Dean ran back again after their ride was over. Both kids got to go twice. Maybe we should have gone more than twice. There was not much of a line, and it was one of the few that Dean could do (although Mom had to fight to get him on, poor guy was old enough for the rides, just not big enough. So he'd be told he couldn't, and he'd get upset - can you blame him?).

::flying!::

::it may not look it, but Grandma insists he had a fabulous time::

Eventually, we moved on and on. We went into the Legoland Factory and watched how legos are made - but the kids found it boring and it was hard to maneuver the stroller in there. Then we had lunch and our birthday cupcakes before moving on.

::it takes some serious concentration to stick six candles in six cupcakes
- then again, it was a serious moment::

::it didn't take her long to figure out pulling the candles back out is fun::

::just one blueberry? why not cover the whole cupcake in them?::

At some point we went on the little train that runs all around Legoland and finally saw just what all we could do. From the train, we saw the lego horses and decided we needed to go to the land of knights. Here is where I have to tell you that Grandma and I took off and abandoned the kids and Sven because we saw that there was hardly any line for the Feuerdrache and we both wanted to do a fun roller coaster.

When we were up in line in the castle, we looked down and got Georgia's attention. She cried because we hadn't taken her with us and we had to explain to her that she wouldn't have wanted to go on that roller coaster, it was too fast and scary. So we convinced her that she wanted to ride on the lego horses.

And convincing is the key-word here, because she had to ride on it by herself. No parents aloud. It took some talking, but eventually she climbed on and went all the way around by herself. When she got off, she said that she was "scared of the peoples". Later we passed by the spot she meant. There was a lego man hanging from a sign, and when the horse and lance went by, he yelled: oh no! not again! and spun around in a circle. She pointed and said that that was the peoples she was scared of. Brave girl. I never imagined it could truly be scary to go around in a big circle on a slowly moving mechanical horse!

After the horse-ride, we found a roller coaster that Georgia could do with Daddy. They waited in a very long line:

::I was impressed that Georgia didn't back out and get scared,
especially considering how long she had to wait in line before she got to ride::

and then Sven sat on the outside of the car and so I have no shots of Georgia on her very first rollercoaster.

And poor Dean? He couldn't do the horse, he wasn't allowed to do the roller coaster and he was getting tired and upset. So he got an ice cream, that he refused to share with Grandma at all.

::bye-bye Nana!::

Georgia had to have an ice cream when she saw Dean's, so we spent a while slurping ice creams before we finally moved on. Not very far though. Sven got caught up in the hands on building area, and while he and Dean played with Duplos, Georgia discovered a water-spitting dinosaur. This might possibly have been her most favorite part of the day:

It basically went like this; when this guy started talking...

::are you ready....?::

then this guy squirted water in the air:

Even Grandma, who didn't know what was being said, knew that when the first guy started talking, that the water was on its way and so she'd say to Georgia: get ready...are you ready?

GOOOOOO!

::and Georgia ran!::

::laughing the whole way::

::so fast, her feet didn't even touch the ground!::

Later, we walked by the water-squirting dino again and Georgia waited and waited and waited, but no water came. He had been turned off, much to her disappointment.

We finally moved away from that dinosaur and headed to the Aussichtsturm, because everyone could do that together. We left the stroller behind, got in line and were off.

::Dean got to sit on the garbage while waiting...lucky him::

::the tower going up while we waited our turn::

While we were inside, going up, we saw even more of the park, like the huge water playground and the water roller coaster in adventure land. The minute we got off the tower, we steered everyone toward the water and then we told Sven that we were running off to the water roller coaster. He admitted that he didn't want to go because while we were in the tower-ride, the weather had started cooling off and he didn't want to get wet with a breeze - silly German!

So we left the kids and Sven to play while we went on to the water coaster. It started out nicely enough. We had a bit of a wait and watched while everyone came off soaking wet, and giggled. Then we got on the ride and it started up. It went in a very dark cave, up slowly with bats and spiders all around us and we thought: well Georgia would hate this! and then in the near pitch-black, the car stopped, turned around and we plunged down backwards, hit the water and got soaked! That was the biggest surprise. Then we floated around, seeing lost-world sights of dinosaurs who spit at us:

before getting to the base of the last hill climb when the whole ride stopped. Totally. no movement, nothing for about ten minutes due to some sort of emergency stop. It was a total bummer, all the build-up to the last big plunge was lost as we waited and waited, finalyl got going only to climb up and plunge down and it was over. Oh well.

While we were doing that, the kids were playing and getting wet as well:

::peek-a-boo!::

::not really excited to be in a lion::

::she much preferred the water::

::this one seems to have had much more fun in the lion::

::but AUTOS! are best::

::going down the stairs instead of sliding down the slide::

And then we came back, had a short break, watched the sky getting darker and decided to run back to Adventure Land for the rides there. In fact, I wish we'd started in this area, it had more rides for both kids and was just generally more fun.

Oh, but first the kids and Sven jumped on the kiddie train:

::Georgia lovin' it::

::Dean would eventually wave on his own::

In Adventure Land, Georgia and Dean got to do the canoe ride, both entirely by themselves!

::paddling her own canoe - too bad she was paddling the wrong way!::

::the sky...taken while the kids were on the canoe ride,
but of course we had to run to one more ride before dashing for cover::

::wasn't sure Dean was having fun, maybe he wasn't sure what was going on::

::and then Georgia was finished with her ride, hopped off,
found Dean and his whole face broke out in a smile -
she can always get him to smile!::

Yes, we did run on to the safari-car ride after that. It was so fast though, I had no time to take pictures while on it, and was too busy making sure Dean didn't fall out to take them anyway. Even the pictures Grandma took of us on the ride turned out blurred. It's a good thing though, that it went fast, it gave us time to ride it, and then jump out and dash for cover before the downpour hit us. We stayed dry:

::watching the rain and hail::

::crazy rain::

::twirling in the last insistent dribbles::

::on sissy's heels::

After the rain stopped, the sun did come out again and we thought we'd run and do the pedal cars. We had hardly a wait, but when we got ready to get in, the woman barked at us first, that Grandma couldn't come too, and then that Dean was too small and to get off. So Grandma took our place, and an upset Dean and an upset Mommy went back downstairs and played with Duplos. By the time they got back from the pedal cars (where Georgia was upset at our having not come with), the sky had once again darkened and the next downpour had started. This one did not let up, so we eventually stripped down and ran through the rain, which eventually let up enough for us to shiver our way through Miniland - but not enough for us to want to pull out the cameras, and then we headed home.

Red Pants

Okay, so the next post was supposed to be Legoland. I even have the pictures edited for web and uploaded to flickr, but then I ran out of time to actually write the post. So instead, you get a quick update of yesterday's activities, because well, it's quick. I suppose you could look for Legoland later today, it's just a matter of writing and inserting pictures, so shouldn't take too much more time.

So Grandma had to leave early yesterday morning. Early is an understatement. My eloquent sister would refer to the time we left as the BCOD, and she'd be correct. The flight from Munich to Frankfurt was at 6:10am. Boarding was at 5:40am and Grandma had to be checked into her flight no later than 5:30am. So you know we were there at 4:30am, which meant Grandma was up at 2:30am and showering. Anyway. it was early.

We came home and went to bed, although we had to fight Dean to sleep, as he had slept on the way over and the way back. But sleep we eventually did. And then w got up, had blueberry pancakes with blueberry syrup and Sven took off with the kids to get new tires for my bike and I got started on that kimono-style bathrobe from the Amy Butler In Stitches book. That was a huge disaster. The robe has many small defects, thanks to me not being careful, but the major defect is the fact that I made a size large, and it swallows me whole. According to the measurements, a size large should have fit me...and I wanted to go too large rather than too small. In other words, I was too chicken to make a medium. It was a fast sew. We laid it out and cut it out on Monday night. Ahem. I did. Do you want to know how Grandma helps teach you to sew?

Me, sitting on the floor, up to my ears in three meters of light cotton fabric that will not lay flat, fussing and complaining that this is too big, and that's not long enough, and why won't this WORK?

Mom, sitting on the couch with laptop in lap, playing her facebook farm game responds like this:
sure, i'll harvest your farm! hey, get out of there, that's mine! I want that one. ooh, you don't get much for strawberries....

Five minutes after I've gotten up in frustration, walked away and come back, she looks up and says brightly: almost finished?!

She did play that farm game during every one of my projects, but to be fair, at the beginning, when I had no idea what I was doing, she did put it down and help. And just sitting there while I grumble is boring. So she kept herself busy...

Anyway. The robe was laid out and pinned together Monday night and I was able to sew it from beginning to end on Tuesday. It was a million very long straight seams that went on forever, so I tended to hit the pedal too hard and break my bobbin thread too often. And I had the stupid bobbin wound wrong as well, so there were many tension problems. Never mind. The robe is finished. It is too big and therefore I am not sharing a picture. Unless I figure out how to take it in.

After the robe was finished, I did manage to finish up Georgia's red pants. And that was a much happier event. And those are photos I can even share. You see, the red pants were originally planned to go with the Very Hungry Caterpillar top, but I didn't get them finished in time for her to wear them together last week. The pants are from another of Mom's old patterns, Butterick this time. They are a simple elastic waist and belled bottoms. However, they are a size 6. Georgia is not yet 4, and although a size 4 is too short, a size 5 is still too long. So the pants were going to be too big from the get-go. Then of course, I forgot to take crotch-length into account and they were even longer. So when we tried them on her, they went up to her arm pits, and pooled at her feet.

"Too big for me," she said.

So yesterday, I shortened them, put in the waistband and hemmed them up about three or four inches - I couldn't bring myself to cut off the length, maybe some day I can let them down...so instead of flashy bell bottoms, she's got a pair of very loose, wide-leg pants.

I put them on her this morning, with the top for her very last day EVER at Bunchkids, and she very unwillingly, let me take some pictures:

::She chooses her waistline to be below her belly button,

and the waistband is a bit wonky because
she pulled up the pants herself::

As for the day without Grandma: it sucked. Georgia nearly cried all the way back to the car. She kept saying in her little pathetic voice: I want Grandma. I want to ride the plane. I want Grandma. I want Grandma. And this made me choke up until I could say nothing but: me too, baby.

She asked for Grandma off and on all day long, and even mentioned her this morning when I told her she had to put on sun block. Something about Grandma having already put it on her...but it will be good to get the kids back on a semi-normal schedule. I can't handle another night of unsettled screaming from an over-tired Dean with bags under his eyes!

little red sundress & the very hungry caterpillar

I finished Georgia's red sundress on Tuesday afternoon. It was the same pattern as the green sundress, and so the sewing went quite a bit faster, as I didn't have to look at the directions as often. The main differences were the bodice, and the godet inserts in the skirt. The red dress has spaghetti straps and bows, so the bodice is much smaller and the zipper is shorter. Since Mom hadn't planned on making the strap dress, she didn't bring a short zipper and I had to learn to whip stitch the zipper in order to shorten it. The skirt of the dress has six godet inserts to make it flare a teeny bit more, and twirl that much better than the green dress. Unfortunately, while twirling her, Georgia fell and hurt her foot and has refused to wear the dress since...but that's jumping ahead of myself. The godets are trimmed with ribbon and bows, very girlie, and my last-ditch attempt to make the dress appealing to Georgia, since it was sans pink and flowers...

Despite liking this dress much better (because I think it is better-made), I had to con Georgia into wearing it by telling her it was Grandma's dress and Georgia couldn't have it, or wear it. Thankfully, that worked and I got her to wear it to Arthur's birthday party later that afternoon. Not realizing just how hot it was outside, I paired it with a short white sweater and let her wear her Easter shoes. I knew better than to make her pose in the dress, so I don't have fabulous shots of the dress-details.

::skipping along, waiting for Daddy so we can go::

::bottom front view::

::godet insert & ribbon trim::

::straps and bows::

::back detail::

I was very pleased with the zipper on this dress. I used white bobbin thread and red top thread so that you wouldn't see the seam on the inside, though the bobbin went through a bit on the outside, it doesn't look bad, the seam is straight and even and it's just teeny bits of white that blend in with the white polka. I do still need to add a hook & eye, we noticed it was necessary after she'd been wearing it. I also need to tighten the straps. I had to coerce her into trying on the dress in order to find out the strap-length and she was trying it on over her t-shirt and skirt. When I got it finished and on her, the straps were too loose and the bodice poofs out because of it. Hopefully minor fixes.

::gratis shot because I love those toes::

A while back, I was shopping for a certain fabric that I wanted for myself, when I popped onto an Austrian fabric store that has decent prices. After ordering the fabric, I got my confirmation Email and went back to the website for payment information and stumbled upon the most fabulous material. Without even stopping to think, I emailed the owner and asked if I could add a meter of it to my order? Later, I nearly regretted the impulsive decision, as I had no idea what I was going to do with it, and I was trying to only buy fabric with specific projects in mind. However, I no longer regret it, because after getting it, washing it, ironing it and realizing what I could do with it, I loved it more and more. It was fabulous to work with, and gave me practice lining up a big pattern. No, my lining up is not perfect, after I had laid out the pattern and cut it out, I was lying in bed when I realized how I should have cut it out to make the line up in back perfect. Too late, carrying on.

So with Mom's help, I finished the very hungry caterpillar top by Wednesday afternoon, but of course Georgia refused to wear it. No bows, no pink...nothing girlie? Never mind, I know how to work her. Next morning it got put on her, that was that:

::front view::

::back view, Simplicity Pattern from Grandma,
Very Hungry Caterpillar fabric::

This top has no bodice, so I had to learn to do front and armhole facing, understitching and slip stitching. Plus, the lining up thing. If you look at the back of the top, you'll see where I made the mistake. I should have cut out the back pieces next to each other on the fabric, instead of folding the fabric. Then I could have made sure that the pattern on the fabric was uninterrupted from side to side. Oh well. I learn a bit each time, and that's what matters, right?

What I did:

• learned what understitching is, and how to do it
• sewed godet inserts
• sewed/made bows
• shortened a zipper by using a whip stitch
  
• learned a new way to insert a zipper - without an overlap
• sewed armhole and neck facing
• slipstitched so that the seam is nearly invisible (still working on that trick)
• learned how to line things up properly, even though I didn't actually accomplish it

Next up: finishing the red pants to go with the top (they are a size 6 and Georgia isn't quite a five yet, so I have a lot of shortening to do, so that they'll actually fit her) and laying out my kimono-style bathrobe fabric, and starting that project. As soon as my Simplicity patterns arrive from the states (stupid me should have had them sent here), I'll be able to make Georgia's mermaid dress and her sunbonnet sue dress. I also have a smocked summer top planned for Georgia with some yummy lime green polka fabric. However, due to our recent flurry of last-minute events before Grandma abandons us again on Tuesday, there has been no time for sewing, blogging, or picture-editing. Today was spent in Munich (again) and tomorrow we may be off to Garmisch for the folklore events starting in the evening...

Six Years Gone By

It was six years ago today, that Zane was born. In his memory, we spent the day at Legoland, Deutschland. I think that a six-year old boy would love Legoland. Heck, once she figured out what it was all about, my almost-four-year old little girl loved it! So that's what we did. We packed a picnic and cupcakes, and headed off to Günzburg.

I made blueberry cupcakes, as we'd been blueberry-picking the day before:

And after our lunch, I pulled out six (both for a would-be six year old and for a should-be six-person-event) cupcakes and lit six candles. Georgia and Dean were clueless as to the why, but they did enjoy blowing out the candles.

It's not exactly a happy memory.

But at least the kids enjoyed the cupcakes and the candles.

::cupcake or ice cream?::

::after much practice...::

::more practice::

::success::

I guess he'll know what to do on his birthday...


(The rest of Legoland is coming soon)

Technical Difficulties

And please don't tell me it's the camera...

Mom and I were just about to sit down and take a look at the pictures from today's trip to the blueberry fields and the ice cream parlour when my camera card spit out nothing but junk. The pictures (all but 13?) are gone and I am in the process of trying to recover something...anything. I'm not particularly devastated by the possible loss of today's pictures, I wasn't taking much of anything anyway. I am however, worried that the card-error (which is just one more in a recent line of errors) is related to a camera malfunction. If my camera dies, I think I might curl up and die with it.

Pending time and possible exhaustion, I do have pictures from the previous days that are safely stored on the computer and waiting to be edited and shared - including Leon's birthday party, a trip to Ikea, Arthur's birthday party, Georgia's new sundress (the red polka I finished yesterday) and those 13 blueberry-picking photos. But for now, I think I'll crawl into bed before I melt into a puddle (it finally warmed up here) and get some sleep before we head out to Legoland tomorrow morning to celebrate Zane's would-have-been SIXTH birthday, in style.

Coming Soon...

I thought I could do a quick week-in-review, but upon editing 100's of pictures, I realized that that wasn't going to happen. So be on the lookout for back-posted stories from the past week, that didn't get posted during the week because we all got sick...

Putting on our Tourist Caps

That's right, Grandma couldn't remember the last time we'd been into Munich (the touristy part) and just wandered. So we hopped on the S-bahn and took off for Viktualienmarkt, the Fussgängerzone & Stacchus...at least, that was the original plan!

::on the S6 to Isartor::

::lavender hearts at Viktualienmarkt::

I never can seem to take pictures at Viktualienmarkt, I get distracted by all the sights and sounds...but really, this was the only picture? Pathetic.

Viktualienmarkt was a success in that Grandma got some new 'bouncy guys'. I talked her into getting Aloisius, ein Münchner im Himmel (and an English Translation) and she also got Biene Maja (picture link). This proved to be a bit of a mistake, as Georgia really wanted one too (a giraffe) but we both knew that she was too young to be playing with them, as they weren't really toys. It just resulted in a very whiny Georgia (not forgetting, she was rather sick and forced to walk quite a bit that day).

So with great effort, she got her feet moving toward Marienplatz and the Fischbrunnen (it went like this: Georgia! Can you show grandma the fish fountain? I can't FIND it! Come on, Georgia, I'll help you, let's show Grandma the fish fountain! I can't FIND it, Mommy... repeat until we arrive.

::detail of the Fischbrunnen::

Georgia wanted to splash in the fountain, but despite looking bright blue, and crystal clear, it was littered with cigarette butts and other garbage, so she wasn't allowed.

::sitting on the fountain, not allowed to touch::

::seriously need to put on a zoom lens and take off the fixed lens for touristy city days.
But the fixed 50mm is so much lighter...::

We then managed to get Georgia's bored and tired feet to the Kilian's Irish Pub am Dom (don't worry, we promised Grandma authentic German fare at Alter Wirt).

::Grandma's Strongbow::

::Hamburger...ummmmm - she was sitting across from me,
she got her picture taken often::

::sharing fish and chips, or rather, the chips::

::no one will ever believe it if you say this was my beer, tasting Sven's
Dunkles Weissbier, and surprised that it didn't taste disgusting at all::

::running around in the courtyard after finishing lunch and getting bored::

::sharing Dean's Apfelschorle because she'd already finished both of hers...::

It was a great stopping place for lunch because it is right behind the Frauenkirche, so there was very little traffic, either foot or car and the kids were able to get up from the table and run around when they got bored (which was soon). And since we were so near the Frauenkirche (english link), we walked up to it, with the plan to take the kids to the fountain outside the entrance, but Dean walked right into the church instead...

::Georgia's foot::

::Grandma's foot::

::Dean's feet::

So we let the kids look a bit and step into the devil's footprint (scroll down), before moving on outside, where we discovered the fountain was not one for kids to be playing in, or near. Strike two.

And on to the Fußgängerzone, of which we saw nothing, because nearly the moment we stepped out onto the throughfare, a certain little girl, who had had nearly half a liter of apfelschorle at lunch, needed to pee. So I took off with her, thankfully Karstadt was only a few feet away. We hadn't been there in a few years though, I guess. Because when I walked in and started up the esclators, I could not figure out which floor the bathroom was on, and I made Georgia go up to the very top floor, before realizing this was no good, looking at the map and heading back down again, where I had to stop and ask directions, as they had remodeled so much. In fact, they'd remodeled so extensively, that the fabric department, had been moved from the store down the road, into that one! And so Grandma and I had a look-around while Sven went on to Stacchus with the kids.

Okay, Grandma and I didn't take that long at the fabric store (which although large, was not impressive in it's cotton selections), but Sven and the kids still had a few minor disasters. Instead of waiting for us to get ice cream, he took them into McDonald's for dishes. The minute Georgia had her ice cream in hand, she had to pee (all that apfelschorle), so Sven schlepped both kids and both ice creams into the bathroom (which is down the stairs) and somehow Georgia's ice cream ended up in the toilet...When we arrived, Dean was covered in ice cream and caramel sauce, and Georgia was soaking wet from the fountain and crying at the loss of her ice cream. So instead of getting fun pictures of the kids being sprayed by the fountain, we turned around and headed back to the Gelato-stand where Georgia, Grandma and I all got ice cream on cones. Dean did not, as he was still eating his McDonald's ice cream at the time. Naturally, the minute we had our cones in hand, his was finished and the cup was in the garbage and he went nearly ballistic when he saw he wasn't getting an ice cream on a cone too...poor tired little guy.

We headed back to Karstadt and the toy department (that store is insane) and spent a good hour or so looking at toys. Dean conked out in the backpack and Georgia discovered the murmelbahn. It didn't take long for Dean to wake up and join her.

::playing with the dolls::

::getting ready to throw the marble::

::watching the marbles go round and round and round...::

And then we went to the Augustiner Biergarten.

::Prost!::

Grandma doesn't like Apfelschorle or bubbly water and beverages from the coke family don't quench your thirst. So what does she drink? A Radler, of course. She didn't realize she'd be getting a whole Maß though!

::A Radler Maß::

::tired Georgia::

And then finally, home.

The Dress: another post about sewing

When Grandma arrived, she brought a dress pattern and fabric with her. I think on Day 2, I pulled out the pattern and started cutting it up. No, I didn't read through the directions first, only enough to see which of the pattern pieces I would be needing, and then if I had any other questions, I asked Mom and made her look at the directions...I had all the pattern pieces cut and laid out on the fabric by the time Oma and Opa arrived and was cutting them out of the fabric their first day. Then I had to stop. Neither Mom nor I wanted to try and sew with such a full house and no real peace and quiet. So the project got put on hold, although I was very eager to get started.

I think on Sunday, after Oma and Opa left, we did nothing but sit on the couch all evening and play with the iTouch and computer, but Monday afternoon had me pulling out the pattern and start sewing.

And by Tuesday night (can that be right?) I was putting on the zipper and hanging it up for Georgia to wear today.

::front view, Simplicity Pattern No. 4721::

::bodice::

::bodice detail - silk flowers by Heidi Swapp;
isn't it nice when Scrapbooking comes in handy for sewing projects?::

::back view::

::side view::

::she's taking a picture of the sky::

::it is a great twirling dress::

What we did:

• cut out a pattern in the proper direction regarding fabric grain
• sewed darts
• made a bodice with lining
• made cap sleeves with ribbon trim
• sewed a zipper
• learned which foot is the zipper foot, and how to use it
• fought bobbin tension
• ripped seams
• sewed wrong sides together
• learned to cut notches and what they're for
• stay stitching
  
• stitching in the ditch
• lots of ironing
• lots of learning

Georgia is now the proud owner of a (in my opinion) very flattering dress. No more of those empire waists with full skirts starting under her armpits! And yes, the patterns are expensive and the fabrics aren't always cheap, but the dress has four sizes and four variations. It's got to be worth it in the end. Next up: the dress with ribbon straps and godet inserts in a red polka dot fabric.

And while we were taking those pictures of the dress (with a very uncooperative Georgia), Dean was clacking around in her dress-up heels.

::he loves shoes, especially if the clack clack clack when he walks::

Jack & Jill's, Leiberheim & Baths

This morning, Georgia, Sven and I went to observe at Jack & Jill's, which is an English-speaking (and run) preschool in Neubiberg. I wanted to start sending Georgia when she turned three, but the requirements included being potty-trained, and she wasn't until recently, so she's starting in September instead.

So anyway (man, when I'm tired, I have trouble writing to entertain, this may be a very boring blog post...), we were scheduled for an observation at 10:30am on July 14th. 10:30 is snacktime, and Helen (the woman I was communicating with) suggested we come then, so that she would have some time to talk with me. We walked in and Georgia clammed up and refused to sit down with the other children, and ate her snack (I packed it quickly before we left) at the desk with Helen, Sven and me.

Helen had a craft project planned and had included Georgia, so when the kids finished their snack, Georgia got to join them in making a sunflower. Sven and I did have to do some convincing; didn't Georgia want to make a flower? A flower for Grandma?! Yes, you want to do a flower for Grandma, don't you. And in the end, she did:

I have to say, the art project had me a bit uneasy. Helen had a chair so that I could join Georgia, and I was trying to sit back and guide her, without interfering. In doing that, I got to observe just how the 'teachers' went about getting the project done. Because that's what it felt like, like they were rushing the children along as quickly as possible to just get it done.

Georgia was carefully putting glue around her paper plate, but was very, very distracted (understandably) by the other children, and often sat there with her glue spoon poised above the plate, the glue dribbling off onto the plate unnoticed. I tried to gently prod her back to her project, when the German (there were two English women, and one German) came over and grabbed the flower petals out of my hands, took Georgia's left hand out of her lap and placed it firmly on the table, putting the petals next to her and telling her she has TWO hands, she should use them. Then a petal fell off Georgia's plate because she hadn't pressed hard enough and the woman came back and pushed it onto the plate herself. Okay, that was showing Georgia how to make sure it sticks. Fine. Georgia did a great job putting her petals on, so I watched the German walk over and hurry the boy next to Georgia along...and take another girl's flower away from her (she was finished?). Then Georgia started to carefully dribble her sunflower seeds on the flower's face. She was putting them around one-by-one when the German popped again and said: now put the face on, here's the mouth, put glue on it, stick it down, here are the eyes, stick them on! And Georgia was forced to stop with the sunflowers, was confused that she was now supposed to put glue on the mouth and not on the plate and dropped a whole glob of glue into the sunflower seeds.

Well. As soon as she had her face glued on, I told her to go ahead and add as many sunflower seeds as she liked. The German came up two more times, trying to get the flower away from Georgia, but Georgia was not finished. She took the flower to the dry-off area by herself when she was finished.

After the craft project, the children hurried out into the hall, put on their shoes and lined up at the stairs. Georgia was a bit shy and worried, she wanted to stay with Sven and me when the German (again!) came up and took her by the arm, telling her, firmly, to LINE UP! So Georgia lined up with the other children and went up the stairs to the courtyard where she stood, looking overwhelmed as the other kids stormed the boxes of toys and ran around. She somehow managed to get stuck playing with the other two new girls and the German. The German was very agressive about how to play the games, following the rules and doing it exactly as she said. She never bothered to learn any of the three girl's names, didn't ask what they were and then proceeded to give me a lecture on how to dress 'my child' properly for summer weather: she must always wear long sleeves because little children burn easily. She says this to the red-headed freckle-face sitting IN THE SHADE.

The German almost ruined the whole thing for me. She had me upset and I was ready to not send Georgia next year, just because of her, but the English women saved the day. They were sweet, remembered Georgia's name and made me feel that it would be okay. In fact, I think I'll drop her an Email and ask if the German will be there both days, or if she is maybe only there on a Tuesday. Georgia did however, have a wonderful time. She jumped rope, played ball and tossed rings. She got hot and sweaty and nearly fell asleep on the ride home. In fact, she didn't want to leave, she wanted to join the other children for lunch and started a tantrum when I told her we were going home to eat with Grandma and Dean.

Later in the afternoon, we packed up the bikes and went to Leiberheim with Andrea and Leon. Dean would have stayed in the bobby-car area with the BMW the whole time, but his very red cheeks caused me to make him sit in the shade for a while. Later, he migrated to a slide because that's what Sissy and Leon were doing:

The afternoon ended on a slightly bad note, as a very bratty (that word is much too nice) little kid managed to turn both my kids into crying messes. First, he climbed over Georgia, who was sitting on the end of the slide, getting rocks out of her shoes, and when he got to the top of the slide, he slid down as hard and fast as he could, slamming into Georgia with his feet and sending her flying. While she was crying in bewilderment and pain, he walked over to the other side of the slide, where Dean thought he might try to climb up and threw a handful of rocks at Dean. Then, since Dean didn't react, picked up the rope that is attached to the ladder for climbing and proceeded to throw it at Dean's head again, and again, and again until he smacked Dean. When Dean started crying, the brat was satisfied and took off up the ladder. I was already on my feet and headed over and blew up at the brat, telling him it was not okay to do any of the things he had just done and that he needed to apologize, to which he looked at me and gave me the most horrible grin that said: I'm cute and can do whatever I want, no one ever disciplines me.

Perhaps the worst part of the whole thing? While I was standing there yelling at this brat, his family was watching me and not saying or doing a single thing.

We biked home and got the kids in the bath. AFter takign some hilarious pictures of Dean (that I am not posting publically, but which will be in my July 2009 Flickr Set for those of you with privliges) I let Georgia take some. This is my favorite:

Goodness, after going back and re-living yesterday, I'm suddenly no longer wondering just why I am so emotionally exhausted today...