a shortcut

for weeks now (or months, really) when our nightly hair combing sessions ended in tears (99.9% of them) i've been asking luci if she wanted to get her hair cut short...because then it wouldn't get so tangled and would be easier to comb. sometimes she said yes, sometimes she said no. i had no idea if she comprehended what i was asking.

then one night not long ago during one particularly rough combing session she told me she said, "i want a shortcut". i thought it was code for something her dad had done at some point during a combing session to make it easier. i said, "a shortcut? what shortcut?" and she said, "a no tangles shortcut."

well said, my pea.

so she was in.

but her dad ALWAYS said no.

until the other night.

so i did not dally. yesterday after dad left work we went to two different salons (the first didn't have any openings for a few hours) and got ourselves a 'shortcut'.

the stylist's eyes got huge when i told her i wanted it chin length. "no long hair?" she asked. "nope." i replied. i thought luci might freak when the hair started to fall, but she didn't. she saved the freaking out for when she couldn't see me or when the stylist tried to position her head just so. luckily it wasn't anything a lollipop, an episode of dora & a promise of ice cream couldn't solve.

as promised we then had frozen yogurt at a place where you can pick the toppings yourself...she was happy as a clam. later while she was washing her hands she looked in the mirror and definitely looked surprised to see herself, but didn't say anything. then tonight getting out of the bathtub she said, "i want it all around" (in reference to her hair being all over her face...just the way she likes it) and started to whine. so being the smart mama i am quickly said, "let's comb it & see how nice it is!" sure enough combing took no time at all she was once again thrilled with her 'shortcut'.

before...modeling her new dress from grandma & grandpa pierse's good friends the guerra family...

i'll admit...when i see her hair full of volume (achieved only by bouncing on a trampoline) i think it looks gorgeous. but then i remember that it usually looked stringy as in the above photo...

and the after...

("look mom! i made of a pile of papers!"...why yes...yes you did.)

i think she looks older with it short?

three years

dear luci,

three years ago tonight your dad & i met you for the first time. we were SO eager to meet you, so excited to be your parents and have the joy of raising you. i'm not going to lie...it has been a much tougher job than we anticipated. we want to be such great examples for you and do everything right by you. and doing that 24/7 is one.tough.job. because we are far, far, far from perfect. but please know how hard we try. we love you more than words can say.

i can't believe how much you've changed over the last year. and for the last few months i couldn't really comprehend that you were only two. you are so smart and articulate. you hear everything...even when dad & i don't think you are listening. you use our words back to us and keep us in check on a daily basis. today you told me you "screamed all holy moly" which is a way i've described your fits on the phone to your dad. you have lots of funny sayings that i love...for example, i might say, "he likes to dance", and you'd reply "he DOES like to dance". or i might say, "did you have fun at the y?" and you'd say, "i didn't, i didn't." when you want the tv off you say, "turn off it". you regularly say things like, "i had coffee tomorrow when i was a mom" in response to me telling you that coffee is only for mamas or "i go to work in six days when i was a dad" when talking about how your dad goes to work.

right now you LOVE cinderella. you really really like all princesses, but you LOVE cinderella. you ask me to be lady tremaine 100x a day. and no, that is NOT an exaggeration. yesterday we had a breakthrough when i told you i didn't want to be lady tremaine because i wanted to be nice. you responded that i could be a nice lady tremaine. now that we can pretend off the cuff instead of re-enacting the movie i'm much more up for the challenge.

more on that note, you love to pretend. sometimes you'll ask me 'who you trying to be, mom?' i usually reply that i'm just trying to be luci & gus' mommy. this answer rarely satisfies you.

you still like the little einsteins. you also like olivia, ni hao kai lan and dora. you still enjoy dr. seuss movies. but you LOVE cinderella i. and ii. not so much cinderella iii.

you think your hair is "kinda gray, almost yellow". your hair drives me bonkers. it is always covering half of your face because that is the way you like it. you never let me tuck it behind your ears and no way jose will you let me put a bow, barette, headband or pony tail in. we even crafted cinderella like headbands this week...and you put them on...with 1/2 of your hair in front of your headband so it was still covering your face!! i think we are about it get it cut though...i'm worried you are going to have goofy posture from the way you hold your head (so that you can see through the hair!) and your dad has finally given me his okay to do so.

you love your brother but have a hard time being gentle. i think part of it is that you are experimenting with what actually hurts him & what doesn't. but you do love him. every morning you ask me, "is gus awake? can i go say hi?". and once he's awake enough to function he lights up when he realizes you are there. if he's crying & you sing to him he'll stop crying 80% of the time.

you are a go-getter. i'd be willing to bet that you are going to be a type a personality (just like your dad & me). you are stubborn and determined. we love this about you, yet find it incredibly challenging to channel these traits in productive ways.

you are a good eater. you've become a little more picky since i stopped cooking back when i was pregnant with your brother, but when you do eat you eat quite a bit. you used to eat ANYTHING i'd put in front of you. now your favorites are chicken nuggets, pizza & peanut butter sandwiches. you love grandpa bread. you love broccoli (especially with cheese), carrots, peas, corn, green beans & even asparagus. you will not eat beans (except green beans). you love cheese, and will eat most any fruit. you like burgers. you LOVE ice cream, cupcakes, brownies (all baked goods really) and lollipops. you don't get an opportunity to eat candy much, but i'm pretty sure you'd eat it if we let you. you love chips. you love cow's milk only...not so much any other kind of milk.

you FREAK OUT when a show ends if the TV is still on. we can't - for the life of us - figure this out. "turn off it! turn OFF IT!" you scream & cry until the TV is, in fact, off.

you love to scream & yell under the guise of singing. usually dancing (running around, sometimes in circles) is involved.

you have an UNBELIEVABLE amount of energy.

you are incredibly smart and have the most AMAZING memory. seriously...you memorize entire stories (that take us 10 minutes to read). you can say your abc's, count to 15ish, put blocks in ABC order and 123 order (up to 9). you long ago mastered your colors. you can sort of trace the letters of your name. when asked to spell your name you say "L, U, C, I, A." when we ask you what that spells you say "that spells me." you read letters on items and then proclaim what the item is. for example, we had a gift bag with the name GUS on it. you said, "G, U, S. that spells bag!" on the computer you said, "D, E, L, L. that spells circle!" because the dell name was in a circle. you know you live in the woodlands, tx. you know what states your grandparents, aunts, uncles & cousins live in. you know your birthday is july 25th. you know how old you are, in addition to how old your dad & i are.

you are in a state of transition...i suspect you don't totally want to be a big girl yet. there are things you absolutely could do yourself that you want help with. and there are other things i wish you'd let me help with that you want to do by yourself. you have a HUGE desire to be with other little friends, but the thought of leaving the safety of home & your mom & dad is really, really hard for you. and knowing it is hard for you is super hard for me.

i suspect my biggest challenge as your mama is going to be letting you figure out things on your own (as appropriate) knowing you're going to struggle. it is so hard for me to watch you struggle. i want to protect you, keep you safe & make you feel secure at all times. but i know teaching you how to struggle & overcome is part of my job too. i have a feeling this part of my job is going to get bigger & bigger each year. it's going to be hard, but as you'd say, 'i know we can do it!' we will learn together my pea. i promise to do my best.

i just love ya love ya love ya sweet girl. happy birthday.

potty time

potty time has been FULL of funny quotes...and before i forget them or they no longer seem adorable i'm going to jot them down...

-i always know when she has to go because she uses the same voice and says the same thing each time. it starts with a surprise face and "oh!", and then is usually followed by, "mom! i gotta go potty!" if she is really into some activity and she doesn't want to go she still says, "oh!" with a surprise face, realizing she has to go, but then she'll say something else if she doesn't want to be interrupted, like "oh! [pause], i like this show!" then i know she has to go, she just doesn't want to.
-"it's hard to pee like a princess"...while wearing her new super full skirt princess dress up costume
-"i peed sideways!" while half hanging off of the toilet to watch the business in real time
-describing her deposit..."i made a shoe!", "i made a family!", "i made ariel's thing! [i think she meant her mermaid fin?] but it broke [sounding sad & dejected]", "i made just you, mommy", "i made a gus!", "i made a banana!", "i made a burger!", "i made a seesaw!", "i made a whale!"
-"something is wrong!" when she didn't sit back far enough & pee went everywhere despite "making it in time"
-"i just peed all over everything" when she doesn't get there in time

and clay is going to give me heck for this, but she saw him peeing once and then proceeded to try to stand-up to pee the next time she had to go. i wasn't here but i heard there was quite a meltdown when he explained that standing up just wasn't going to work for her.

she also quickly realized that if she's in time-out & says, "oh! i gotta go potty!" a reprieve is granted. funny how she has to pee every.single.time. she's in time-out.

she seems to be able to hold it most of the time if a potty is not within sight (ex: in the car) and really only has an accident if she's tired (usually the end of the day) and really into a show or activity. but overall she's done a great job with potty training and we are VERY proud of her!

and some non-related photos just for kicks...

laying out her swim suit before we hit the 'beach'

i told her to stand behind her princess line so i could take a photo and she promptly ran to get a pillow (so she had something to stand on) and then put herself in the line. this kid cracks me up.

.

else it never be

last night...

mom: time to go upstairs for bed, lu.
lu: yes, time for bednight. have ta go to bednight for daddy to be home, else it never be my birthday!!!

luci's birthday is on 7/25, but her birthday "ball" is tomorrow. she is SO EXCITED that she's FULL of angst waiting for it! i keep telling her what comes next before her birthday....first she had to wait for dad to go to work, then for grandma & grandpa to arrive, then for daddy to get home from work, then we have one more bednight then we go to church THEN it is time for the birthday ball!! i'm guessing the next 29 hours are going to be difficult.

stay tuned...

sibling love

She initiated this...I'm surprised she has any hair left!




















and watching baby einstein (we're so proud of their love of TV...just kiddin ;) luci loved them when she was a babe and loves them still as a big kid. i usually end up putting one on before dinner time if clay is on a trip while i prepare a PB&J for the lu and some kind of mashed mush for the boy.









and i just had to include one of the cutest chubby cheeked faces i've ever seen...

what she does all day

she's very into ordered chaos these days. everything has to be spread all over the place...but spread just so. heaven forbid you suggest cleaning anything up and having it put away out of sight. cause she's still playing with them.

princess memory game cards are sorted by princess...or by dresses vs head shots vs friends of princesses. tinkertoys are laid out just so in a 1/2 moon...every time. every piece of food she has displayed for a tea party covering every inch of whatever surface she decides is the table or picnic place. every single dress up outfit is completely accessorized (necklaces, rings, purses, phones, cameras, head piece, shoes, etc.). every animal friend is put on a chair with a piece of food. she even dug gus' sleep suits out of the dirty clothes so she could spread them out in his room side by side.

she is a very busy girl.

and there is a method to her madness, but only she knows what that method is. and heaven help you if you mess up her system...there'll be h*ll to pay. this new obsession to have everything displayed in such a visual yet orderly to her way reminds me of someone i know...and it isn't her dad. sorry dad. maybe gusgus will be on your team.

have bossy big sister, will play dress up

he's a puppy... no, wait...a bunny!

no..wait...a princess of sorts...

nope! a birthday cake (he's laughing, i promise)!

G @ 6mo...for real

-big boy weighed in at 18 lbs, 14 oz (90%) around 5 1/2 months...we are a bit off on our well baby visit schedule because we delayed some shots but are all caught up now
-he LOVES LOVES LOVES him some sister. he wants to pull her hair, give her open mouth kisses, be in whatever she's in...he especially loves it when she sings to him. he loves him all things luci.
-he loves all things luci to the point that if she's in the room he's not interested in nursing...he wants to see what she's doing. cute, but annoying to mama.
-i now turn off the monitor at night - i can only hear him if he screams all holy moly...which he does usually 1x per night around 2a or 3a. i get up & feed him, and usually 20 minutes later we are all back to sleep. (you'd think i'd be feeling more rested, but not yet. i must have about an average of 3 hours short for 6 months = 549 hours to catch up on...guess that will take awhile)
-he goes to bed between 6:15p and 6:45p and usually wakes between 6a and 7a...typically closer to 6a :(

-he sleeps in a baby merlin's magic sleepsuit

-he naps between 8:30a & 9a for 45-90 minutes, then again 2-3 hours after waking up from the first nap, usually between 12p & 1p for another 45-90 minutes, and often then again between 4p & 5p for 30 minutes or so.
-he puts EVERYTHING in his mouth...diapers, wipes, spoons, bibs, washcloths, brushes, ducks (in the bath), fingers, the straps of my tank tops, luci's hair...seriously...EVERYTHING.
-no teeth yet
-he's in the big inflatable duck in the bath tub these days
-he sits, but often ends up on his face/belly because he's reaching for something to put into his mouth
-he loves him some mama. he regularly cries now if i even just put him in the jumperoo. he takes it personally...saying...."hey! don't you just wanna hold me? i like it when you hold me!!"...but then after 30 seconds or so he calms down & starts jumpin happy as a clam.
-he likes to hang out in his crib on his back trying to kick his mobile friends
-pedi suggested 3 meals a day of solids. we've been doing it about 2 1/2 weeks now, but it isn't going super well. a-he doesn't open his mouth. i have to take the paci out, shove the food in, and promptly replace the paci for all but about the first 3 bites b-he only likes bananas & sweet potatoes, and once he LOVED carrots but only once!??!!? c-he only eats the purees when mixed with cereal, he doesn't like the runny texture of strictly pureed food d-he kicks & arches & wants out of the highchair as soon as you put him in. e-he's been constipated for the last week f-he gets a rash on his face wherever most food touches. a+b+c+d+e+f= tired, exhausted, frustrated mama (and baby boy, i'm sure). my cooking is pretty much nil these days. luci gets nuggets or pb&j or pizza, gus gets baby food and i eat cereal or frozen pizza when the kids go to bed. fun, fun times. i'm hoping this gets better soon.

-he nurses 1x per night and 4-5x during the day
-his skin has been irritated lately...food really bothers his cheeks, and the drool on his shirts gives his chest a rash. and the crease in his neck? AWFUL. poor thing. i'm sure it is super uncomfortable.

-he's gaining mobility by the day...he scoots backwards, but doesn't seem to understand why or how he's moved & then he gets mad because he's farther away from toys than he was originally
-he's incredibly detailed oriented. he'll look at a tag for 30 minutes, or chew on his doggie's ear for 20 minutes. he notices things like patterns on my pj pants & wants to touch them. most little baby toys have extended arms or paws or fish that hang off of them...he always spends forever looking at just one of them...and eating it of course. by contrast lulu would try to put the whole thing her mouth & never gave the specifics of each toy a second thought...and when she couldn't get the whole thing in her mouth she'd throw it after about 2 minutes

and some outtakes...he seriously finds SUCH joy in his sister. and she finds SUCH joy in her brother. warms my heart in a way i could never have anticipated or expected :-) so blessed, so blessed.

surprise face!

he's going to be tough...