Security System Needed to Inform if Someone is Leaving the House

For a while, we would lock Saku's door at bedtime so we wouldn't have to deal with the "out of bed, back to bed, out of bed" circus. Yes it is shocking (not) that Saku is not a child who just goes to sleep without a beep. He didn't like the fact that we locked the door, but he got used to it. He would go and check the door and when he found it locked, he would go back to bed.

After our trip to Finland, Saku freaked out when we closed his door and had a complete melt down with the locked door. "Don't lock the door" and "Äiti/isi locked the door" were phrases that he cried as if we had cut out of his arm. After a two week separation, we were suckers and couldn't listen to him cry like that.

So for night after night, we have played the "how to get Saku to stay in his room" game.

One night, he came out of his room as we were laying in bed and had turned off our lights in hopes that he would go back to bed when he found the house completely dark. He came to our bedroom door, peaked in and walked away. The next thing, we see a light coming into our room and as I opened our door, Saku was standing in front of the freezer and checking out "the menu".

Monday morning, we woke up to Saku's talking as he was using a serving fork to eat some double chocolate fudge brownie ice cream. And last night, he was playing with the dishwasher in the dark.

While writing this, Saku went to the garage. He knows how to open the lock and the dead bolt. Opened Troy's car door. Climbed in. Pushed the garage door opener. As the garage door was opening, Troy promptly ran there to stop his next move.

As my wise friend Camry said today, Saku just thinks a lot. He figures out ways to do things. So while, few months ago we locked his door so we could get some time to ourselves, now I'm thinking that we need to lock it for his safety. And while, I don't love our neighborhood and would probably feel little safer if we had a security system, I really am feeling that it would more wisely used to know that Saku hasn't figured out a way to get out of the house.

We bought chain locks for our doors to keep our little man in the house.

So when I look back to this time in my life, this is why I feel like I am so busy all the time. But I wouldn't have it any other way. I know he will accomplish some amazing things.

My Weekend

The kids and Troy left Friday morning. For the first half an hour, I kept rushing around the house to do things and then I realized that I didn't have to do that. I would have 48 hours to myself.

And then I promptly grabbed the newest John Grisham novel and parked myself on the couch for the next 45 minutes.

Friday was my "get stuff done" day. And I did get a lot of stuff done. I climbed up to our attic space and got Christmas decorations out. Kitchen cabinets and refrigerator got scrubbed and organized. Our rooms got cleaned and papers were organized. I had Thanksgiving leftovers for lunch and pannukakku for dinner with a bowl of chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream.

I watched Sarah's Key. I watched the entire movie while I sat on the couch. I always, and I mean always, multitask when I watch TV shows or movies. So for once, I just sat there and watched it. It was a great movie. No, I take it back. I didn't just watch it. I painted my nails-fingers and toes. As I went to bed, I texted Troy that I missed him but I was beyond excited about the uninterrupted sleep ahead of me.

Saturday started as I woke up at 9:20 after 11 hours of sleep. Then I proceeded to read in bed. I have slept in at times when Troy takes care of the kids, but this was guiltless sleeping. I spent few hours of doing something that I can't even remember and then I left for my day out.

I got dressed up in my skinny jeans, boots, and a new hat. I had my fake Coach bag that only had things that I needed. I got to drive while listening to my music.

I went to Bookman's and scored books for the kids, checked out Buffalo Exchange and came home with a new dress and found two more books and a toy for Eerika at Little Traders. Yes, I hit up all the thrift stores and I loved all the things I found and how little I spent. It was so effortless to just walk around and look at things.

Then I ate lunch at Beyond Bread as I read my book and enjoyed my sandwich and a cookie. I was able to take all the time I wanted and needed.

I dropped off donations at DI.

I stopped to buy a new lipstick that looks awesome on me.

All these stops that were so easy because I just had to get out and lock the car and walk away.

And then the highlight of the weekend, I watched Justin Bieber-Never Say Never. It was pretty much the only thing that redbox had that wasn't R rated, but I am not gonna lie, it was entertaining to watch while I wrapped Christmas presents and finished cleaning the house.

Troy doesn't enjoy blog posts that are pretty much just details of what happened. However, this was my weekend and I want to remember what I did and how relaxed and happy I was. I wasn't any happier because I was on my own, but I feel so re-energized. I can't wait to see the kids and Troy in 20 minutes or so.

Thank you Troy for this amazing opportunity to take time for myself. This is the best gift that I could get. I feel like million bucks.

Most of all though, I am beyond happy that I have my little family.

My big girl

Dear Eerika

10 months ago, you were this tiny little baby girl. We loved you, but we didn't know that much about you.

And now

you are

fearless,

witty,

strong,

beautiful,

fast crawler,

messy eater

and

so ticklish.

You can

stand up on your own

and take steps, but you aren't in a hurry to do it.

You love climbing

on couches, playgrounds and the dishwasher.

You enjoy

taking books out of the self and throwing them on the floor.

You have charmed

Saku and he gets excited about playing with you.

And you don't mind how crazy and wild it can get with him.

You have learned

to clap and wave goodbye.

You say

mama and "dada" and you giggle as you do it.

Thanks to Halloween,

we know that you like lollipops.

I can't believe that you are old enough to wear these sweet pink Converse shoes.

But I am loving this stage of life with you.

Multiple Identities

Saku loves to pretend play. Frequently when I ask him to do something, he will tell me "no, say "please kitty cat/dog/Wyatt(Super Why)". He loves to be Eerika, especially now that she gets a lot of attention for her new tricks such as walking.

As we drove to the children's museum today, Saku insisted that I was Heather, he was James and Eerika was Julia. And so we played our parts all the way to the museum.

While it can be a hit and miss how well James and Saku play together, I couldn't be more grateful for my friendship with Heather. It is so nice to have someone who understands you, supports you and loves you. So if I have to pretend to be someone else, I will take on Heather's identity any time.

The Best Apology Ever

We don't do much spanking in our house. I was never spanked (that I can remember) while Troy got spanked a ton (and it didn't make an ounce of difference in his behavior), so spanks are saved for very special occasions. We are nice like that.

On Saturday, Troy gave Saku a spank. After the whole situation was over, Troy apologized to Saku for spanking him.

Saku's response "say sorry to peppu (bum)". And Troy did.

A Little Bit of Everything

I feel like we have been living a full life lately. Let me explain what I mean by this. It has been busy, it has been exhausting, but it has been good. I try to take a tons of pictures of the every day events and I just don't have time to blog about them.

So here some of our favorite things lately.

Eerika loves me. I mean she LOVES me. I worked Saturday night and before I came home on Sunday morning, Troy said that she kept crawling to our bedroom and looking for me. This is Eerika's standard face. She is a happy girl. Oh so happy and silly. But she is not a smiley baby. She gives you big, open mouth "I like you" faces.

We finally drove up north and played with Lili, Lois and Simon for few hours. I am not exaggerating when I say that it was few hours of almost pure bliss for me. Lois and Saku played without any fighting. Does that even happen? Eerika loved playing with new toys and climbing on the furniture and stairs. Eerika was roughing Simon up and we got some cute pictures of them. Lili and I caught up about our lives, ate delicious soup and I left happy. Saku told me "I want more Lois" as we drove home.

Saku is such a skinny dude that I pretty much let him eat whatever. Calories are calories in my book. Most of the days, we eat oatmeal, eggs, cheese, apple sauce and other healthy things. Saku even likes salmon and trout. Then there are times, when we go to McDonald's and get the cheese burger. Or I give him a good chunk of brownie. Again, calories are calories.

And every once in a blue moon, the kids like to snack on peas and carrots.

Eerika has started the "let me drop my food on to the floor" game. I strongly dislike picking up bananas from the floor; especially when they are mushy bananas that she has played with and slobbered on.

As I am de-cluttering and putting away baby toys, I remember how much kids love playing with baby toys. I mean after they have outgrown the suggested age for the toy.

Everyone raves about the fact how fun it is to dress girls up. I agree, but Eerika doesn't get that dressed up often. She is in that stage where her clothes are always dirty from crawling outside, and eating. So we often go through few outfits each day.

On our last outing, I thought she looked so fun with her leggings, skirt and a jacket. I love when I dress her in something other than just pink. Anyone else feel this way? Baby girl clothes are just so pink-too pink- at times.

We love when we get to hang out with our favorite people. The kids get to go to the zoo so much that they barely look at the animals but we still have fun. Haley and Camille were great sports as we tried to keep up with Saku as he zoomed through the zoo.

Eerika has officially stopped being a little baby and she has become a big baby girl. Her new trick is to but walkie talkies on her ears and pretend to talk to them. Troy made a comment how she has really changed in the past month. She has become a clever little girl.

And she can take few steps now. New record is 10 steps! She took her first steps on 11/18/11 but she doesnt seem that interested in walking.

One thing hasn't changed: she is such a beauty.

Saku likes to do things independently and be involved in everything. And when it is possible, it is fun to let him do things "on his own". Troy and Saku made a scrambled egg together yesterday.

While Troy was gone, I would take the kids out for an evening walk. It served two purposes: the kids liked being outside and watching the Halloween lights and it killed some time between dinner and bed time. Those two hours can sometimes feel like an eternity. Troy is now back home, but we have started to go on "night hikes" in the evening. Few houses have Christmas lights on and the kids love them.

Lightening things up

It is so fun to see the different little things and personality traits that our children have. When Saku does something clever, mischievous or naughty, while I might be proud, impressed, baffled, or just plain mad, I am not that surprised with him.

Maybe due to Eerika's younger age and the fact that I just don't "know" her as well yet, her little antics can surprise me.

Today I put her down for a nap, which has been a huge battle due to a cold and I think she has realized that she could just play instead of nap, and I heard her talking in the room. She might cry when I put down for a nap, but this "talking" business was new. Through the baby monitor, it also sounded like she was moving around in the crib a lot, so I decided to check up on her.

And I found this.

She had pulled down the black out curtains and towels that cover the windows. Suddenly she wasn't so upset about hanging out in the crib. I love that she is aware of her surroundings and that she took her time to pull down those towels and curtains down. She was promptly moved to a pack-n-play in our room and she was not happy about it.

The poor girl doesn't have her own room. She sleeps in the guest bedroom. Or should I say that our guest sleep in Eerika's bedroom?

I meant to decorate the room, but now we are hoping to move into a new house so I won't be spending my money or time on that room. At least, she doesn't sleep in our walk-in closet or the bathroom anymore.

If only...

Troy was gone for two weeks in Japan for a work assignment. I survived; thanks to few awesome friends and my trip to Phoenix to spend time with Troy's parents. Troy got back last Saturday night and it was so nice to have him home. He stayed home Sunday and Monday and then Tuesday came and he had to go to work.

And I don't think I was ready to tackle the full day of motherhood and parenting again. Sounds weird because I do it all the time. It is my job. But I just have noticed that I am exhausted. I powered through the weeks of his absence and now I seem to run out of energy when he is back. Does that make sense?

Then this morning, I checked my beloved google reader and read Bridget's post on nannies. And I want one. Will I hire a nanny? Do we need it since we only have two kids and I am a stay-at-home-mom (except for my bi-monthly shift)? No is the answer to both of these questions.

I would feel too guilty and I am too cheap.

But wouldn't it be nice if I could run errands without buckling and unbuckling the kids 10 times, when I would have to keep telling Saku "not so loud" "stay right here" when he is being a happy, normal two year old, when I didn't have to schedule everything between naps and when things wouldn't take five times longer than needed because I had kids with me.

And let's talk about the little luxuries of life that I could do if I had few kid free hours during the day each week. I could go for a run that didn't have to match perfectly with the nap time. I could go to the bookstore and actually read the books. Maybe I could go shopping (OK, this would happen maybe twice a year) and actually look at clothes in stead of wondering where Saku happened to hide. I could have a lunch with a friend and have uninterrupted conversation with her. I could meet my husband for a lunch date.

And then I would return home and be excited and happy to see my kids. I am not saying that I am not happy to see and be with them each day, because I am. But if you are a mother and you are honest, you know what I mean when I say, sometimes it is good to be away from them so you want to really really be with them.

Thanks Bridget for the few minutes of dreaming that I was able to do. And sorry if it seems that I highjacked your awesome post.

Oh She is Trouble

Eerika's new favorite thing is to pull on the cords and wires under our computer desk.

Oh, and she has really mastered the fake cry that she utilizes quite often.

Oh How I Have Waited For This!

It is fall/winter time in Arizona and I am in love. There is no guarantee that the weather doesn't warm up, but I have absolutely loved the past few days of cold weather and rain. It makes my heart so happy to wake up to a chilly house, drink some hot chocolate, put sweatshirts and long pants on my kids and spend time outside.

This is the time of the year when we say "Tucson isn't that bad" and just wait until May when we start to complain about the heat. We are predictable like that. It happens every year. But for few months, I will embrace the cooler weather and all the fun things that we can do.