We're BAAAAACK!

Home feels so good. There's nothing like 4 days in a car with a 5 year-old and a baby to make home the BEST place on earth. For most of the trip I sat in-between Pippi and Bardo. Pippi loved it since I was there to play pretend with her. She was Marissa and I was Michelle. Then we played puppets and I got to be the ballerina and the queen while she was the mermaid and the fairy. Evidently fairies ride on airplanes for 18 hours to Disneyland. Towards the end of the trip Pippi assigned me to me Harry Potter so that she could be Hermione. The Obnoxious Warlock thinks he's Super Man because he drove for three days straight, but I think I could earn the "Super Woman" award for pretending for 3 days straight while taking care of Bardo.

We had a great time visiting with the Obnoxious Warlock's family. Bardo and Pippi got to visit with their great-grandparents on OW's side, my sister, and my aunt. Hooray!

We also attended the BYU Homecoming game. The obnoxious warlock intently watched the game, but I must say that Pippi, Bardo, their cute Aunt Kissy, and I were busy doing other things.

One day on our vacation, I looked out the window to see Rebecca out in the field with the farm animals. She decided that she thought the burrow needed a friend. She gave it a great big hug. Just the other day she told be that he was sad because his horse friend Jenny died. "He's sad when I leave because I'm his friend, too," she says clearly and seriously.

The Answer Dog

One night Pippi brought me What to Expect When the New Baby Comes Home to me for a bedtime story. As I was reading the book, I realized how great a big sister Pippi really has been to Bardo. Even though I didn't remember all the things the book tells kids to do, Pippi sure remembered. For instance, I think she drew a picture a few weeks ago that I was supposed to hang by Bardo's changing table. She also plays with him by singing songs, and she's always there to help me give him a bath. Pippi's also always ready to fetch a diaper or wipes for me when I ask her. So the Answer Dog's done it again. Answered questions in the best way for the kids that aren't really sure what questions to even ask.

I'm Gonna Take Away Your Birthday

Today was just one of those days. I felt manipulated and frustrated as Pippi exercised her independence today. For some reason, with every request, she skipped the asking part (let alone, the asking politely part) and went straight to freaking out. I'm trying to be a good Mom and putting together a last minute birthday party for Pippi and her friends. (The reason why this party was last minute is a post for another day, entirely.) I literally had to threaten to call all her friends and cancel the party. Isn't that a witch-like thing to do?

Pippi's new haircut

The clips were removed 10 minutes after the photo was taken. By the way, it wasn't really raining that day. It just looked like it might rain. Who needs an excuse to wear ladybug rain boots anyway?

Keeping Track of Pippi

She wakes up, and immediately runs out the door, barefoot. I keep trying to teach her that: she needs to tell me where she's going, she probably should wear shoes (and socks and a sweater now that it's OCTOBER), and please oh please stay in my line of sight from the window. One day I called out the window. Usually she comes running, but on this day she didn't answer back. Am I talking about my family dog? No, I'm talking about my impetuous almost-five-year-old. So what did I do? I ran out barefoot, carrying my 2 month-old. I looked all the way down the street to the right and yelled her name. I looked to the left. One of the kids in the playground volunteered to look in the back of our building for her. She wasn't there. Where was she? Why wasn't she answering? Bardo was falling asleep, and I could tell that I was going to have to run around our block to find her. I didn't feel terribly worried in my heart, but my brain told me that I really should know where Pippi was playing all the time. After I put Bardo in his bed and put some shoes on, I reappeared in our yard. The neighbor across the street informed me that she was just down the street, out of sight, but perfectly safe. Perfectly safe in a mud puddle with a neighbor boy, that is. "Pippi, what are you doing?" I asked her. "Push-ups." Did I mention she was wearing white? "Did you hear me calling your name?" "I heard somebody calling my name..." "Was it fun in the mud puddle?" (I know, I know, a stupid question.) I couldn't get mad at her; she was so cute, and I kind of admire the ability to do push-ups in a mud puddle.

Today I found Pippi at our neighbor's house. Her friend was doing homework. She'd only been gone 15 minutes, but when I found her, she was working on a large bowl of rice and watching the Disney Channel. One of my fellow book club members told me that her grandfather used to wander the neighborhood asking for food. His mother found out about this and solved the problem by pinning a "Do Not Feed" sign to his shirt. Should I do this?

So how do I make home a more attractive place to be. Do I allow her to paint all day long? Maybe I should let her watch TV (we really don't watch TV until Daddy comes home).

Sometimes I'll convince her to do an activity, like get in her swimsuit and play in the bath tub while I clean the rest of the bathroom. But then she wants me to pretend to be Harry Potter while she gets to be Hermione. Sometimes she pretends to be Moaning Myrtle. Thank goodness she makes her big splashes in the bath tub and NOT in the toilet. Or I get to pretend to be Grandma Bigney, and she gets to be Brittany. Her imagination is constantly working. It's obvious to her that I'm completely inept at pretending (though, I have to say I'm better then the neighborhood kids) so she helps me along, whispering cues.