7QT: Scribbles, Sleep Deprivation, and Summer Fun

Whew.  Greetings from an exhausted Mama.  Our summer has been packed with activity and the coming weeks are going to continue the pattern.  But just for a moment, while little C is napping and N and L are playing "Tigers in the Winter"

Imma bust out some (hopefully very quick!) quick takes.

But I'm feeling like rambling, so maybe not so quick.  Prepare yourselves.

--- 1 ---

P.S.  L has a bit of a cold, and so her voice is husky as it sometimes is when she is sick.  So she is currently embracing the role of Daddy Tiger quite happily as dictated by {bossy} older sister, adding a bit of extra growl to her husky.  I wish you could be here to hear it, because you would chuckle.

That is all.

--- 2 ---

Because we didn't take a vacation with the girls this summer, and instead selfishly took ourselves away for our anniversary without them, I've been trying to make their summer super fun by attending lots of museums and doing fun day trips.  Our museum time I'm counting towards the 180 hours of school required by us as homeschooling parents in this district.  We really have been learning a lot-- and most museums we want to visit have some sort of family day where admission is free, or we can get library passes.  We've hit a ton-- a living history museum, the art museum, and last week it was the science museum, where the girls caught their first-ever planetarium show!

It sparked a lot of interest and the two older girls checked out astronaut and space exploration books galore this week at the library.

There was also a small dinosaur exhibit that was really enjoyed (N and C are standing in a t-rex footprint above)!

Of course pressing buttons and listening to the characters in the exhibit "talking" is always fun.

Daddy had a half-day and was able to work his hours around so that he could come with us!  We picnicked outside the museum on a beautiful day.

(they were watching an airplane go by!)

--- 3 ---

Today, we went to the botanical garden, but didn't stay long because it was soooo crowded and L was coming down with a little fever.  We checked out the vegetable gardens, did a little kids' scavenger hunt they had available, had our lunch under the glass ceiling, and then I hurried us home for rest time.  We did manage to pose for a couple of pictures:

I'm glad I brought the stroller because L was not up for much walking.  I had to plow down a few people as I navigated our double jogger through the crowds, but it was worth it.  L was such a trooper  I was proud of the other two for helping her along and leaving swiftly when we needed to.

I simply love this place and could have spent weeks there.  Going back soon for sure!!

--- 4 ---

The rest of our time this summer has been filled up with lots of playdates.  We have recently met a few new homeschooling families and have gotten together with a couple of school friends of both older girls.  Both N and L seem to have an limitless appetite for social interaction.  It does wear them out somewhat, and we take rest days here and there, but they seem to be nothing like their introverted mother who could spend weeks not seeing anyone and be perfectly fine.  I find it a little tiring, frankly-- constantly arranging playdates and being with different people all the time.  This doesn't mean that I don't love our friends, and all of the moms are great people that I enjoy talking with and getting to know... but... I still come home exhausted after a full day with people.  I have been this way all my life-- too much talking wears me out!  It is really hard not to offend people with this type of personality, so I try to go out of my comfort zone and be flexible when I can be.

(I also sometimes wonder whether in ancient times of village living and no privacy, there were no such things as introverts and extroverts, or they just weren't labeled as such and people just got over themselves for the sake of the common good.  I guess I should be thankful I live in the time of modern psychology, and I have the luxury of being by myself and navel-gazing.)

Are there any other introverted Mamas out there who have trouble balancing their child's need for socialization with their own need for solitude?  We've done some drop-off playdates and those are a nice balance with the moms-included ones, and I imagine they will start to happen more as the girls get older and as we become more comfortable with new families.  I know that time with friends will be especially important as we embark on homeschooling, so I'm trying to find a social calendar that will be appropriate but also allow enough rest time for all of us.

--- 5 ---

We have had a great week with C and potty training (knock on wood)!!  We have been out and about a lot with her in underwear and it has been accident-free for the most part.  Things really seem to be clicking for her and I am cautiously excited that we won't have any relapses and this will really be "adios" to diapers!!

Something that has been different with C than I remember with my older two... she can always feel when she has gone, even in the middle of the night when she has a pull-up on, and it tends to wake her up.  The really good news is that she usually ends up holding it for most of the night, so maybe night-training and day-training will sort of happen simultaneously (something that did not happen with the older two).  The bad news is that she either wakes me up needing to go around 3 AM, or has already gone and insists on having a new pull-up (she can't stand having anything in her diaper for more than a minute these days).  She also gets up several times after we put her to bed for the night needing to "empty herself" before she can fall asleep.  So sleep has been much interrupted for Mama these days.

I know it's temporary and I'm very proud that she is doing so well.  But with our action-packed summer days I'm really feeling the sleep deprivation keenly.  It reminds me a bit of having a newborn... I'm remembering how much I crave sugar and caffeine when I'm low on sleep.

So on our way back from the gardens today I found myself with one of these in my hand

emptied before I could take a picture!

and the girls chowing down on chocolate chip cookies in the backseat, which of course I helped myself to a couple bites of as well.  And you know what?  None of this improved my energy level... I felt worse afterwards.  What I really needed was a nap, probably!

This happens even more when I'm not feeling energized after a morning run, and morning runs have not been happening lately since I can't get my butt out of bed.  You would think that running would give me an excuse to indulge in food, but I find myself eating healthier when I am keeping up with exercising.  When I'm not running, well... it's like everything is a downward spiral.

Sooo... that's my rambling reminder to myself to keep up with exercising as much as I can, even when sleep isn't happening, because it gives me the energy that coffee and cookies cannot.

--- 6 ---

We have been swinging a lot.

So that's fun.

(The rope swing I hung is still holding fast!  It has provided hours and hours of entertainment!)

--- 7 ---

I bought each of the girls a new box of crayolas for their homeschool pencil boxes; they were on sale at Staples for 49 cents each!!  Wahoo!!

Nobody has enjoyed her box quite as much as our little scribbler, Miss C.

She sits at the table every morning with her Peanuts coloring book for close to 30 minutes.  The funny thing is, she doesn't really color, she mostly draws little smiley faces and circles in the margins:

(N helped her color the clothes and the grass)

...and she also likes to just color in the Peanuts character's noses:

with other little scribbles drawn in randomly.

She seems to like coloring in tight, compact little bundles... quite unlike the huge messy scribbles of most two year olds I know.  I just wonder what's going through her head about all of this.  I'm pretty sure she has some sort of reasoning why.  She tends to about most things these days.

I'm thinking this (among other "busy box" activities) will be great for keeping her busy while we homeschool!  Let's hope the novelty doesn't wear off...

And there you go... seven random rambley quick takes.  How's your summer going??

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