We Do A Lot of Improv Here.

It has been a busy week for me! Only two more weeks until Spring Break - I can make it!

I already wrote about Monday - President's Day.

Tuesday I had my second day of work at the Bibleland Buddies and it was a lot of fun. This time I got to work with the 12-18 month olds and I was in Adah's classroom! This age is much more fun than a bunch of 2-year olds. There's not as much screaming and arguing - these babies tend to play on their own. There's just a lot of herding - trying to get them all outside on the playground, and then getting them all back inside, and then into Bible Class, and then out of Bible Class. The morning went by super fast! Lydia had a better drop off this time and enjoyed herself, too. After work, Leah and I fed the girls lunch at the Church and then let them play on the playground. 

Wednesday was work at the Preschool and Lydia had BSF. After work, I asked Leah if the girls could stay at her house until 4:30 to give me a break - especially since I would be taking care of Adah that evening and into Thursday. Thankfully, Leah was okay with this. I enjoyed relaxing on my own for about 2 hours before getting the girls. Lydia loves the idea of having Adah over, but once Adah's here, Lydia doesn't always like playing with her. Because their is a 15 month difference in their ages, Adah is still not at the imagining and playing-along stage. She prefers independent, parallel play, while Lydia wants to play together. 

They "helped" me make dinner. Lydia has always, always enjoyed baking and cooking with me in the kitchen. Adah, on the other hand, gets distracted by other interesting things in the kitchen and could care less if it's her turn to stir. Here's what cooking with Lydia and Adah looks like:

The girls went down at 8:00. Adah is a great sleeper and didn't wake up all night and didn't want out of her crib until 8:00 the next morning! Leah is one lucky Mommy! Lydia, on the other hand, woke up several times that night and I was not very happy! She was starting to get a runny nose and a little cough, which must have woken her up.

Thursday morning started out fine, even though I was tired from not sleeping much the night before. But, as the morning wore on, Lydia started to drive me crazy! Here's the girls at breakfast (when Lydia was still being sweet):

After breakfast and relaxing a bit in the living room, I decided to take advantage of the beautiful weather and get the girls outside. I wanted them to play in the yard while I quickly straightened the living room and kitchen. This went well, for the most part. Getting them dressed took forever - thanks to Adah's wiggling and Lydia's running away. Once I finished cleaning, I got dressed and was ready to head out for a morning walk. Both girls were willing, but once we got outside, Lydia kept getting upset about the littlest things. Adah was trying to walk ahead, while Lydia kept stopping to adjust baby in the stroller and then she'd get upset about the strap, or something! Ugh. We ended up heading back inside because Lydia wouldn't stop fussing.

After that, we attempted playing outside. This worked well for a little bit until Lydia got upset with Adah and made her cry. Then it was back inside to watch Yo Gabba Gabba until they both calmed down and were ready for lunch. After lunch we managed a quick walk outside, which Adah wanted to enjoy but Lydia was rushing us to get back inside! Finally it was time for nap!

Lydia took forever falling asleep because she had really started coughing at this point. After about a 30 minute rest, she was up and coughing and didn't fall asleep again until 4:00! Adah was up by 3:45 and Leah came and got her. My piano student came at 5:00 for her hour lesson. Lydia woke up about 5:15. The evening went much smoother.

Brian came home late and had a late run and dinner. Lydia was in bed but was constantly waking up because of her cough and runny nose. I ended up sleeping on the floor of her room so I wouldn't have to keep getting up and down to tend to her.

Friday I subbed in Motor Skills. I dropped Lydia off at my mom's house at 8:00 and headed to work. Motor Skills definitely wore me out! We danced to two songs and then did a beanbag relay race! It was a lot of fun...but after doing all that 9 times in a row, my legs hurt and I'm exhausted!

After work, I headed over to my mom's house to start putting together Rekeisha's diaper shower that we are holding tomorrow morning. Her diaper cake came out super nice! 

Lydia was still coughing a ton. I gave her Claritin tonight and a nice, long, hot shower. She went right to sleep and hasn't been coughing, so hopefully she'll have a restful night and feel better in the morning! And hopefully I can have a restful night, as well.

Yeah for the weekend!

And Those Guys from the Christmas Decorations Box. They're Fun, Right?

Happy President's Day!

We have done absolutely nothing to celebrate today...other than laying around the house most of the morning. Brian is off work, so it's great to have him home on a Monday. Lydia woke up at 6:45 this morning, talking to herself. Brian convinced her to go back to sleep until after 7:30. Brian got up with her in the morning because he needed to finish some grading before he had to turn it in by 8:30...so I got to snooze a bit longer than usual on a Monday.

Brian went off to get his haircut at 9:00 and was home less than 30 minutes later. After, that, I straightened up the living room and front room, getting ready for my three piano students this morning. I cancelled all my afternoon students, but kept my morning ones, and one was coming in for a make-up lesson. Five minutes before they were expected to arrive (as Brian and I were discussing what he and Lydia could do during the lessons), I got a text saying that they were not coming. Oh well. I was able to vacuum and clean up some more, and Brian got to finish making his boiled eggs. 

My 11:30 came and we decided to do an hour lesson to make up for the missed one last week and the one this week. Hour lessons are not as difficult as they seem. I actually enjoyed doing an hour lesson with K because we could really take our time. I hardly ever have time to work on theory with her, since we're doing her lesson book, but today we got to do some theory. And we got to start working on her "fun" (slash-challenging) song, Taylor Swift's Love Story. K is a very hard worker and I really enjoy having her for lessons and doing an hour lesson with her went by super fast!

We had lunch and Lydia is down for a nap. When she wakes up we plan on doing something fun (haven't figured out what, yet) and then getting Frozen Yogurt for dinner. Yummy!

Yesterday was a beautiful day, so we just had to spend the morning playing outside. We were extremely lazy and missed church. We had several excuses, but the main one was that it was nice relaxing at home as a family. Here are some pictures of what we did yesterday.

You Would Not Believe What I Have Been Through Tonight!

It's been a rough few days here in the Pfeiffer household. Brian has been staying late at school, I started a new job, and then, to top it off, Lydia gets sick. Thankfully, Lydia is a trooper and didn't stay sick for very long. And, despite staying late, Brian had a good attitude all week and we still managed a very nice Valentine's Day dinner.

Tuesday: I started working at Bibleland Buddies at church Tuesday mornings from 8:30 to 12:30. There is a Women's Bible Study (and possibly a few other Bible studies) on Tuesday mornings and there is childcare for the women. The Bibleland Buddies take care of the kiddos while their moms are in the Study. I worked in the young 2's room - it was super easy and laid back and there were only 5 kids! Lydia got to go to her own class and had a lot of fun. Working these 4 hours a week, and possibly other days, will give me the chance to save up for Lydia's preschool tuition in the Fall. Plus, I am already in the system for working over the summer to make up for not working at the preschool. And, like I said, it's really easy (so far anyway).

Thursday: Thursday was Valentine's Day. Lydia and I relaxed in the morning and right before nap time, I made her a Valentine's Sensory Bath. I thought she would like it a lot more than she did....but she was tired and only interested for a bit. I dyed the water red (didn't stain the bathtub, but did stain her swimsuit a bit), cut out hearts from foam to stick on the walls when wet (these did leave a little mark on the tub), sprinkled fake rose petals in the water, and had hearts on a stick for her to play with. She loves it when the water is dyed and would have had more fun if she hadn't been so tired. For some reason that day, she wanted to take a nap at 12:30!! I ended up putting her down at 12:40, because that's what she wanted, but then she didn't fall asleep until almost 1:30! And, of course, I had make up piano lessons at 3:15 and had to wake her up from her nap at 3:00 (she wasn't too  happy about that).

My mom picked Lydia up around 4:30 so she could spend the night with her cousins. I was then able to clean up the house a bit, get dinner ready and get pretty for Brian. He stayed late at the basketball game, but was able to get home earlier than he thought - around 7:30. I had the table set up with a red tablecloth, a candle, and fake rose petals spread out on the table. I made a yummy chicken and broccoli pasta. We were able to have a nice, long dinner - talking and just enjoying the food. So much nicer than a quick dinner with a toddler constantly getting up and down and crying and interrupting us. After dinner and clean up, Brian gave me his Valentine's present - a new blender to make smoothies! Yeah! 

Friday: I worked at the preschool on Friday during the parent/teacher conferences. Lydia joined me around 10:30 when my mom dropped her off at the church. She was excited about all the friends and toys at first, but then showed signs of getting really tired. My mom had said that the cousins had stayed up late (til 10:45!) and woken up early....so I figured she was overly tired and worn out. I was able to leave a little early and we headed home. Lydia fell asleep on the way home, but woke up when I got her out of the car. While getting her changed for nap, she did a nasty-throw-up-like burp that made her quite upset. I got a little worried, but she didn't throw up and fell right to sleep. She woke up about 2 hours later, but wasn't in the best mood and just wanted to lay on the bed. She said her stomach hurt and that she was tired. We were laying on my bed (luckily I had thrown off the comforter and just had the flat sheet out to cover us up) when she wanted to lay in my lap. Then, of course, she threw up all down herself, down me, and onto the bed. As I was gathering her and the blankets up, she threw up again. I managed to get her to throw up once in the toilet in her bathroom. She was upset, I was anxious for her, it wasn't fun. I cleaned her up, cleaned myself up and the bed and got her situated in the front room (our room without a carpet). I put a big blanket down on the floor, put the small TV out there to watch a movie, and put some pillows down for us to lay on. About 30 minutes after throwing up, she was in a better mood and playing quietly. She didn't throw up again, but hasn't eaten much since yesterday. Brian didn't come home until almost 11:00 because he chaperoned at the Middle School Valentine's Dance.

Saturday: Today has been a lazy, boring day for Lydia and me. Brian left at 6:30 for school, as there was some UIL event going on that he would be at until 3:30. Lydia had woken up at 6:15, crying and acting like she needed to throw up, but she didn't. She woke up again at 7:15 and was ready to get out of bed by 8:00. She asked for a fruit bar and cereal for breakfast, but didn't eat much of either. While she rested, watched TV, and played with stickers and markers, I got busy cleaning the house. I was so bored, I needed something to do! We tried going on a walk, but she got fussy and didn't want to stay out very long. She asked to go down for a nap at 12:30 and fell asleep right away! She slept almost 2 and 1/2 hours and was in a great mood when she woke up! After a snack and some playtime inside, we decided to go outside. 

I put together a sensory tub for her with crushed ice, blue food coloring, and some salt to keep the ice from melting too fast. I put her painting smock on her and put the tub outside in the sun. She had a fun time stirring the ice and then putting some into a bowl. She pretended that the ice in the bowl was food that she was preparing for supper. She brought it into her play house and spent awhile stirring and adding dirt to make supper. 

After that, she played with her tee-ball set. She is not very athletic....I think she takes after me!

And I leave you with two cute pictures of my Princess Lydia. (And yes, she needs her bangs cut in these pictures.)

Hold On, This is No Time to Be Hysterical!

So, Lydia is officially transitioned into a TODDLER BED! Amazing! How do they go from being cradled in your arms to sleeping in a bed without rails (that they can get in and out of on their own)? How did I go from being the mom who would wake up at night to make sure my infant daughter was still breathing to the mom who is able to sleep straight through the night and not feel guilty about it? How do these things happen in just two and a half short years?!

Anyway, Lydia did great with transitioning. I know she was really, really ready. I'm glad she is able to tell us when she's ready to do something. She let me know when she was ready for potty training and was fully trained in less than a month! She let us know when she was ready for a toddler bed and is sleeping great!

Night 1: The first night we didn't put anything up that would block her from falling over the edge of the bed. Brian was certain that she would not fall off the bed. It was super low to the ground, so even if she did, she wouldn't mind or get hurt. For some reason, I listened to my husband............and Lydia fell out of the bed three times by 1:00 in the morning! And guess who was getting up each time to help her back in bed? ME! And it was a Tuesday night, so I had to work the next morning! By 1:00, I was tired of getting up and Lydia was tired of falling out of bed and starting to get upset about it. So, since I didn't have any pool noodles (idea I saw on pinterest, of course), I got a thick blanket from the closet, rolled it up into a sausage, and stuffed it under her fitted sheet. Now, she hits the blanket and doesn't fall off! Yeah!

Several Nights Later: She is sleeping great in her toddler bed and rarely wakes up during the night. She even sleeps in until 7:15 or 7:30! Yeah! The only problem we are noticing is that it takes her forever to fall asleep at night. We used to be able to put her to bed at 8:00 and she would be asleep by 8:15 or sooner. Now, we put her to bed at 8:00 and she's not asleep until almost 9:00 or sometimes later! And, of course, no matter how late she goes to bed, she is always up at 7:15! But, despite taking a long to go to sleep and getting out of bed to get toys and books, she stayed quiet in her room and never tried to get out to join us. Even in the mornings I would hear her playing, but she never crept out into the hall and into my room. 

Several Nights After That: It's the end of the month and she's almost been in her toddler bed for a whole month! Yeah! She is no longer taking an hour to fall asleep but suddenly she's waking up by 6:30!!! No matter how quiet Brian is, she's waking up and staying up. This, of course, leads to her being tired earlier and earlier in the afternoon. She used to be able to make it until 2:00 or so, but now she's ready for a nap before 1:00! I've started purposefully ignoring her until about 7:30...hoping to encourage her to sleep in longer. Sometimes she does manage to sleep until 7:15, but most days she's up before 7:00.

Bedtime Routine: Lydia's bedtime routine has gotten longer and longer now that she's in a toddler bed. I don't know if it is because she's in a toddler bed now, or because she's getting older and knows what she wants before she goes to sleep. We used to be able to get her ready, have her in bed and walk out of the room by 8:10. Now, if we start getting her ready at 8:00, we're not out of the room until almost 8:30!! Her routine is pretty specific. My mom has had her a few nights now and tries to skip some of the bedtime steps...and ends up having to do them later. Lydia has always known what she wants and has a way of convincing you to do what she wants.
So now, instead of starting at 8:00, we start around 7:35 or 7:40, that way we can be out of the room no later than 8:05 or 8:10. Here's how the routine goes (on a good night):
               (1) Get Lydia to go potty.....this can be quite the process just convincing her to get into the      bathroom and sit on the potty....and if she makes a "stinky" she gets to put a sticker on her chart....and deciding which Sesame Street sticker to put on is hard decision.
                 (2) Brush Lydia's teeth....Lydia likes to brush her teeth by herself first, and then it is my turn. After brushing, she likes to drink a few sips of water and than practice spitting the water out. I usually have to cut this fun short.
                    (3) Get Lydia's pajamas on....this can be long and will test your patience. Now that Lydia is in the "I can do it" stage, she has to do everything by herself, including putting on her pajamas. Each item takes forever for her to do! I usually manage to help during the hard parts and if I do it fast enough, she won't notice that I just did everything for her.
                     (4) Read Lydia a few books....we usually limit it to three books. I give her 10 seconds to pick the books out and she will pull as many books off the shelf as she can. But, it's usually the three same books, so she's pretty happy with those.
                                 (a) While Daddy reads the books, I feed Lydia her yogurt. She has started wanting     yogurt when she is being put to bed....I guess it just fills her up a bit and it's yummy.
                 (5) Sing Lydia three songs....Lydia gets to choose the songs she wants and I limit it to three songs, or we'd be singing all night. I use to just sing the songs that I wanted, but she recently started to tell me which ones she wanted. We use to request songs when my mom came in to sing to us at night, so I don't mind Lydia deciding which ones she likes best. She will usually sing along, too.
                      (6) Getting Lydia in bed.....after songs we have to convince Lydia to get in bed. This is where the procrastination comes in big time. First she wants to put baby doll in the crib and we have to kiss it good night and baby needs a pacifier and a blanket. Then she needs her milk, but she really wants juice, but we make her have milk, but the cup isn't filled up enough, and we say "too bad" and she gets over it. Then she decides that the pile of books on her bed isn't big enough and she needs even more books on her bed...and they have to be stacked just right next to her head. And her cup of milk needs to be right next to her pillow. And then she doesn't want her blue blanket, so we cover her up with the pink, and then she decides she does want her blue blanket. Then she won't give Daddy kisses and hugs, but then she does want to give Daddy kisses and hugs. Her music must be on, her nightlights must be on, and her fan must be on. Then we can't close the door all the way (since we now have a doorknob lock on it and she knows she can't get out of the room).

And FINALLY we're done! We have a happy, sleeping toddler in bed by 8:00 (or at least before 8:15)!