miyo's getting older, getting funnier

I took Miyo to the playplace at McDonald's a while back and I keep forgetting to blog about the hilarious thing she said to me. She was pulling my arm to go into the playplace. I said, "Sorry, but I am not going in there." And she looked at me all concerned and sweetly said with a sad voice, "Oh, you too tight?"

She recently pointed to herself and said, "I'm you best friend." So cute. When I asked if she wants to watch tv recently, I asked her if she wanted to watch Dora. She said, "No, Dego." When she sees Ni Hao Kai Lan, she spends the whole time saying, "ni hao".

When I say that we are going bye bye she says, "MCDONALD'S? Oh, that sounds like fun!"

my smart murpharellington

Okay seriously. Yesterday Murphy did the entire ABC calendar from school. Aa apple, Bb ball, Cc cat... He paused a couple of times and we made suggestions, Jj jaguar? Nope, he says, "Jj jam". Then he paused at P. Ben (I thought it was Miles, but Ben said, "That was me.") says, "Pp poop." Murphy laughs and repeats Pp poop. I sent his teacher an email apologizing if that comes out at school. Funny to us, but maybe not to others (Ben and I are perpetual second graders, potty humor gives us a case of the belly laughs).
Anyway... This morning Ben says to me, "Watch this." Then to Murphy he says, "After a while crocodile." Murphy starts a long list of things I have NEVER heard in my life, not even when I was a kid. Something about a kangaroo, something about a buffalo, "chop chop lollipop" and "bye bye butterfly"... We are totally freaking out! It's from school, that beautiful, wonderful school. They are totally getting him out of the inside of his head and letting us see so much more than we have ever seen. When I told the teacher it was all her and the other staff, she said it was Murphy working hard and growing older (typical saint: blame it on someone else-ha ha). I cannot believe the years we wasted in regular special ed with EBD students. It makes me wonder what if? So today I am walking on sunshine. And don't it feel good.

funny miles quotes i almost forgot about

#1

Miles was doing crazy math problems. He was learning about money concepts. PROBLEM: Jeremy makes money for an allowance doing such and such chores, how much money did Jeremey make? Laura earns an allowance of $5 per week but has money taken away for not doing chores, she forgot to make her bed twice....blah blah blah. Third question is going to make someone some money-you choose who...Ben, who helps with math homework, says "Let's use Laura, because she lost some money." Miles' response, "She had her chance."
#2
Miles' math homework is enjoyable to him, because he loves money. I say, "Yuck, I hate homework no matter what." He says to himself with a smile, "Dirty, sexy money."

love it

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tAjFnJuk1Aw

i just totally lost my cool

Miyo just tried to change her own diaper. UGH! It was all over her hands and then she went to wipe her hair out of her face! I screamed at Miles to get me the baby wipes, "NOW!" I got her cleaned up and the moment of panic is gone. Why do I act like some things are the end of the world? She had a bath, we put the baby wipes and diaper in the garage garbage can. It's quiet and all fixed. So why did I react so crazily? Poor Miles. I'm sure he was panicing as well, and flustered and trying to help while I yell. I have to go apologize.

murphy kicks 1st grade butt

Murphy made this fish at school, all by himself! We just got back from his conference/IEP. It was all positive and wonderful! I am so used to leaving the school and feeling like I have been hit by a truck. I usually feel worn out like I have the flu, and my face feels dry and puffy from crying and I have to blow my nose 75 times. But not today! Today, we are on top of the world. Murphy is always liked by his teachers, but usually he has a negative IEP because of all the goals he's not meeting, or he's biting, or his behaviours are so bad... He's sitting well at groups this year, he's participating and initiating. He's communicating his wants. And this year instead of biting when he is mad, he is letting them know by blowing into his fist. I'm can't even think of everything, I am so jittery and happy.
We could tell a big diference already at home. Hearing it from the school makes it set in stone, it's a fact. It's true. It's really happening.
I am going to figure out how to hang this on the wall in the kitchen. So we can look at it everyday, and if I'm being honest: so everyone who comes over can see it too. I haven't even had my coffee today, but I feel like I drank a whole pot.

ben and miles

This is Ben taking a picture of Miles doing the firepit/ramp jump:

This is Ben bringing Miles up the hill, so he wouldn't have to unstrap:
Ben got home from work and I had to add these two pics.

proud mom of 8 year old phenom

Miles taking his first jump over the firepit/3rd time going down the hill (Skete and/or Hanna made a ramp of snow on it). It was a mistake going over it, we both cheered and screamed in disbelief.

Miles' second jump over the firepit (4th time going down the hill):
Midway down the hill before accidetally hitting the jump:
Getting to flat ground:

First fall:

Happy about learning his "favorite new sport".

Skete gave Miles his old snowboard from when he first learned how to snowboard. Miles used it twice on a snow hill at Kim and John's yesterday. When he got home from school today he asked if he could go and try it on the hill behind our house. He went down 4 times in front of me and he always made down the hill and at least 10 to 20 feet past the bottom before sitting on his butt. Someone needs to teach him how to stop instead of having to sit down when he wants to finish. Ben and I are so proud. Next up: boots for snowboarding (he is wearing regular boots). I am excited! My baby is growing up!

don't blog for an hour when you haven't unpacked yet

Because Miyo will unpack for you (and she doesn't do a good job, at all).

kady's old bed frame/miyo's new bed frame

my mom learns about miyo's eating habits

My mom made dreamcicle fudge and spread it on a graham cracker for Murphy and Miyo. Murphy wouldn't touch it, and Miyo ate the fudge off the top and put the graham cracker back on the plate. They love graham crackers, but Miyo apparently loved the fudge more.

home for me, from '79 to '89

This is South Falls Apartments, my home for the first 10 years of my life. My parents managed it and we lived there rent free. We lived in the townhouse on the end (in the picture it is on the left). It had three bedrooms with a basement room converted into a bedroom, and we had 6 kids (you do the math). I loved it, tons of kids so you never were indoors, I played outside all day, came home when mom whistled that it was time to eat, then I went right back out.

This was the hill behind the apartment kiddy-corner. We called the grounds "up the hill" and "down the hill" when describing where we were or were going to be. It looks so tiny, when I was little it felt like a mountain.
This is the back yard, directly behind the house. It used to be thicker woods and bigger trees we would climb and rake leaves under and jump out. There was also big sand hills and sheds with road salt that the city used on the icy roads. We would go in the sheds and suck on those dirty salt rocks (probably after the deer had been there at night, licking them too).
Here is the home of Kady's first kiss (too bad he was in his 70's):

home

International Falls gets the snow off the roads:

Here are the two Mills, one on the US side and one on the Canadian side (lots of wonderful polution for Rainy River and it's inhabitants and neighbors), they smell:
Here is my parents' population sign (Kady got it for them):

Here is my dad's world, the big red barn, he even made it so that the doors up top open up:
And this is home:

all this visitin' is exhausting

my mom is THE best cook

We spent a lot of time enjoying good food from a grandma who makes yummy breakfasts, lunches and dinners; and snacks in between. This breaded chicken came with fettuccine with black olives and artichokes with Havarti on top, and steamed broccoli and cauliflower! Afterwards she made dreamcicle (sp?) fudge.

miyo just loves all of grandmas' stuff

Miyo just loves all of Grandma's stuff. She spent a lot of time looking and touching and looking and touching everything her grandparents have; now that they don't have 6 kids in the house destroying everything.

before the end of the first night

My mom made a cheese cake with cherries on top and after supper we were going to have it. She also made a wonderful bone-in roast with pickle juice (unbelievably delicious!) so we were all really full. So full we weren't hungry for the treat. She put it in the fridge for later. We all settled in the living room to watch Myrna Loy and William Powell in 'After the Thin Man'. We hear a crash, and Murphy runs into the living room looking very scared. The investigation into the sound led to the above being discovered. Apparently Murphy was ready to eat again.

our first night at grandma's

Here is what Skete did while the other kids colored the ocean wood block cutouts that Grandma Dianne bought for them to play with at her house:

Here is Miyo coloring her sea horse:

Here is Miles coloring his crab:

Here is Hanna coloring her angel fish:

Here is Murphy coloring his dolphin:

Here are the end results (Murphy is not pictured because he lost interest and didn't finish after about 5 seconds):

grandma dianne prepares for our arrival

When we arrived at my mom and dad's house, mom had totally gotten prepared for us. She covered all her chairs and bar stools with pillow cases and covered the banister my brother-in-law Marc made. The reason: Murphy's teeth marks aren't the look she is going for. Just ask all the corners of my sheet rock in the old house and now this one (we are putting up plastic corners), and Kady's baby grand piano, and one of the above stools under the pillow case and the above banister under the blankets.

Mom gave me Kady's old bed for Miyo and the second Ben set it up last night he was trying to chew the foot board (it's metal, so no go).

i'm home

I am home from my trip to the Falls. Tomorrow I have all kinds of blogging to do. I took so many pictures and a lot happened. I even visited my childhood home (it looked so small).

road trip

I'm headed to International Falls in the morning to visit my parents. On the way I will pick up Hanna and Skete. I will try not to forget the camera. I am very excited!

miyo the conquerer of #2

This is Miyo on the phone calling Daddy at work to inform him that she pooped on the toilet! I was knitting and watching a show on Discovery Health about Primordial Dwarfism. Miyo grabbed at her diaper and said, "Uh oh, I poop!" So I brought her to the bathroom. There was a streak and 2 tiny pebbles (you are welcome). So she got on the toilet and pooped! We called Ben immediately who is totally a daddy that cheered her on even though there was probably a bunch of truck drivers and warehouse workers in the background. She was very happy! And so are we! She is two years and 4 months, she has gone on the toilet before, but this is her first time telling me it was about to happen. Hopefully this means she is ready. I have her in underwear right now, so I can train myself to keep on it as well.

my new rug

I really don't want to be materialistic, but I got a new rug and I love it. I bought it from World Market, my favorite store. They are closing all their Minnesota stores and I am very unhappy about it. The half full portion of the cup is the clearance sale prices that will allow/force me to own the things I have been denying myself.
The rug is hand-dyed and made of natural fibers. I've never actually purchased a nice rug before, so I am really excited about it.

i'm done feeling sorry for myself and back to upbeat

I have decided to try to knit a blanket. I am knitting 40 x 40 squares of different patterns and colors and then I am going to sew them together in a 4 x 4 pattern. I will have the same four colors throughout the whole blanket, but then I think I will edge and sew the squares together in a different color. Here are three finished squares and the fourth square that I have started. I am hoping to actually keep this up and finish it, we'll see.

I was making a dish rag when I ran out of yarn, so I sewed the ends together and made myself an arm band. Then, when I had better yarn I made Miyo a little mini one that I think is adorable. I am going to try and make her little leg warmers as well. In the picture it is really dark, but you can make it out on her wrist.

murphy book lover

When I got Murphy off the bus today he tried to jump from the top of the steps into my arms. He always does this, and sometimes I'm quick enough to tell him to just walk down the stairs, while physically helping guide him down. Today I made him go down the stairs properly. The bus driver told me, "Yeah, he does that to the teachers too." I literally laughed out loud. I always think I have these things with Murphy that are cute, some times inconvenient, but that most others don't understand. Apparently he doesn't just save it for me.
Today at school the teacher said he tried to write his name with no hand over hand help. She could make out the M ph y. How cool is that. Once, last summer, he wrote his name in chalk on the driveway and did pretty good at it, but it rained the next morning. I have been kicking myself ever since that I didn't take a picture immediately.
I know I like to complain a lot, and I should really try to stop. But today I am a little bit sad and I need to vent. While Murphy was at school I cleaned up his room. Which was all books. He had them everywhere. I am always picking them up. Which I don't mind at all that is not what I am sad about. After he got home he brought me to the book shelf and put my hand on it. I asked if he wanted me to read him a book. No answer. So then I asked if he wanted a specific book. He said, "Baby book?" So I handed him what I thought this meant. He took it and placed it on the chair in his room. Then he said baby book again. So I grabbed a book that I made for him with pictures of the family in it. He set it on the floor, and said it again. I think maybe he was asking for the 'Baby Signs' board books that we have, but I couldn't find them. So then he asked for "Brown Bear?". We have two board books, so I took them both out and he layed them on the floor, then he asked again, "Brown Bear?" So I thought maybe he was talking about the fuzzy brown bear book that is about a bear that doesn't take baths. I can't find it anywhere. I looked over the book shelf three times. I looked in his bed (he usually has a whole library in there). I looked under couches and in Miyo's room, under the book shelf, in the mud room. I looked in my bed (he wants to make that a library too). I cannot find that book anywhere. The point of all of this is: I don't even know if that's what he wants. I don't know what to do. He is all sad and crying while chanting, "Brown Bear?" And he cannot be put off, you can't just offer him a different book. He literally has hundreds of books, that is one of the sure-fire things he loves, you just can't go wrong buying him a book. He even has two of each of his favorites (one for each hand, ha ha).
I don't know why I am obsessing about this, but it just makes me really sad. So today I am sad.