GooMorning!

Pippy likes mornings. So do I, starting about a half hour after my eyes are pried open by a two-year-old. On the weekends, a morning goes like this.

Pip wakes up in our bed or crawls into it and does a little happy bounce:
"Daddy, where [your] glasses?"

 Daddy manages to reach glasses and put them on.

"Daddy, where pants? Get clothes? Get dressed?

Eventually Daddy gets dressed and the two get out of bed.

"Kitties want to come in!!"

They let the kitties inside.

"GooMorning Orangie! GooMorning Ruby! Kitty needs water."

Kitties are pampered/tormented and taken care of.

"Daddy make coffee?"

Eventually coffee is made.

"Pippy need some COFFEE!!!"

Yep, because she needs so much help waking up in the morning.

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For living over a thousand miles from family, Penelope got to see more than her usual quota of family over the holidays. She is still in withdrawel. Every day the conversation varies, but it goes something like this:

"Where Danny? Where Cheska?"

Me: "They are in Wyoming."

"Where Joanna?" (She says Joanna so cutely, like Jo-OONNa) "Talk to Joanna on the phone?"

"Where Grama?"

Me: "Grama's at her house."

"Grama come 'night." She says firmly, as if she will just come back in the evening like when Daddy comes home from work. I try to tell her that we will see Grama sometime in the future, and she just looks sad and says, "Grama hugs."

One morning Wayne was sleeping in the guest bedroom and Penelope heard a noise from the room. She got the biggest eyes and looked at me with a smile, "GRAMA!!!" Poor Pippy.

Somehow she is able to leave the 'coffee' on the soft chair and get up without it spilling.

The Times Have Changed

Oh Dr. Spock, I'm glad I didn't live in your day. I kind of like Google and bookstores with endless books on every aspect of babies.

I have been intrigued by reading some of The Common Sense Book of Baby and Child Care, the main and 'revolutionary' childcare guide in the post-WW2 era, written by Dr. Benjamin Spock. The book was apparently thought of as a better and 'kinder' guide to babies and children, although books geared toward child rearing were few in those days. Some of you may have used this guide yourselves, so some of his advice may not come as a shock to you. However, as a mother of today's age, I find some that is contrary to my own instincts, and downright ludicrous compared to many of the en vogue practices of today's age. Much of it, though, is quite amusing.

Dr. Spock suggests that the baby's wardrobe consist of 3-6 shirts, 3-6 nightgowns, a sweater or two, and hats (all 1-year size). Socks are not needed for several months. A typical guide today would include 4-6 onesies, 4-6 playsuits, 2-4 shirts, 2-4 pants, 2-3 sweaters, 3-4 pajamas, 2 sleepsacks, 2-4 socks, 2 mittens, 2-3 hats, and 1 sunhat. Size newborn of course.

I would assume that in Dr. Spock's day they didn't have a new clothing size every three months, but one size for a whole year? I guess it would be frugal, but girls, you missed out on a lot of shopping! No wonder I often hear from older women, "They make such cute clothes for babies nowadays..."

As a side note, I would like to point out that my mother and aunt never read and followed the no-sock advice. They would both go into near hysterics if Penelope ever was seen without socks. In a warm house, they were always concerned that she would instantly 'catch cold' without having socks on.

Some of the first few things Dr. Spock says about the actual baby, are "Don't be afraid of him," and that he is "usually disappointing looking" after birth. How encouraging! (The baby is always referred to as a male.)

Dr. Spock did encourage breastfeeding, and told women that it didn't mean that they would 'lose their figure,' and they could still lead a normal life while doing so! (However, if a nursing mother became 'nervously upset,' milk production can dwindle. Nervously upset, huh?

Apparently in 1950 you didn't run to the store for formula. You...ahem....made it. A typical recipe was 10 ounces of evaporated milk, 20 ounces of water, and 2 tablespoons of corn syrup for a newborn for one day. CORN SYRUP!!! The biggest evil by today's health standards. That's 32 grams of sugar, nearly the recommended daily value for an ADULT!

I think I need a few minutes to mull that over. You never did this to me, RIGHT, MOM?!?!

To be continued....I've got about 490 more pages to read before knowing how to raise a child.

Playing outside

Uncles are so much fun

....and have so much energy!

Penelope and Uncle Danny had lots of fun.

Cheska would only let Danny have popcorn if he caught it in his mouth. These two were entertaining.

Every day P piles books on this chair, usually getting mad and needing help when they fall over. Then she sits there and looks through each book. Pretty cute. And genius.

She likes to carry the violin and sing - "Sing! YAYA YA YAA"

12-30

Playing a game with Danny and Chesca

Pippy Slurping every drop of a grapefruit

Mom and Abigail in hysterics right before they left. If you want to know why ask them:)

Who knew markers were for your face?

If Danny is taking a nap it must be cool.

Typing

Christmas 2014

New Year's Eve breakfast with my Aunt Linda and Uncle Walter

Penelope got the sniffles, but thought it was really fun to get tissues from Walter

Pippy bothered Abigail to no end

Talking on the phone

Our Christmas Dinner appetizer - Baked Camembert. Penelope preferred leftover chicken breast and drummie - which she ate nearly all of!

When you're buddies, you fold your legs the same way.

Abs with the Camembert

Pip and Great Grandpa

Great Grandpa Jess with his youngest grandchild. My grandpa is 89 years young and spent 30 hours on a train to come and see us!

No....neither of them were having fun!

Dinner with Friends

These four girls are all about the same age and usually play together really well! (The mom's have fun together too!)

We went to Olivia's to play and do a craft project. Note Pippy's FIRST pony tail!

Later that week we got together with the men and had a wonderful dinner.

 These cool cats add lots of excitement to our lives

These two are pals...

And laying on the stairs was the main event of the evening

Pre Christmas Update

Well hello....I lost the cable to the camera but found a card reader. Anyway, not a whole lot has been going on here with the Wayshetribe, but here are a few picture. Grandma, Abigail, and Great Grandpa Cloyd got here today to spend the holidays with us.

Pippy loves taking care of her babies

making and feeding her babies elaborate meals

We stayed in a hotel and Penelope was very excited to go swimming.

Lots of time swimming

Scavenging for a snack

Did I mention she loves babies?

Pip and dad now have to sit by the 'songs' nearly every night and listen to music or occasionally sing themselves.

So yesterday I was in Walmart...

....this could go anywhere from here, couldn't it?

So I was in Walmart, when I walked by a middle aged man arranging carrots.

Man: "Hey, You've got Alice in Wonderland socks!"

Usually I am totally clueless with any animated characters, so I just sort of nodded politely and kept walking. I was wearing some snowflake tights, rather cute ones, I admit. But after google-ing Alice in Wonderland at home, I found no resemblance.

 The man then runs after me. "NO! That's not right. It's the cat! It's the cat from Alice in Wonderland that has stripes!"

I again said something polite and tried to focus intently on the tomatoes.

"I just can't focus on one thing before I'm distracted and my brain jumps to something else!" he says, setting a bag of carrots on top of some mushrooms. "You see, my wife says I've got ADD, but it's Adult Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder."