Honk the horn, it's a tunnel

Willa loves to scream for horn honking in tunnels. Then giggles with delight when Karri honks the horn.
Right now Willa is repeating everything that Ethan says, "I am excited to be back in my town. I am excited!"

Michael Lapin
Philips Healthcare, Legal Counsel
425-487-7009
michael.lapin@philips.com

This message may be confidential or legally privileged. If you are not the intended recipient, please contact the snder and destroy all copies of the original message.

---

The information contained in this message may be confidential and legally protected under applicable law. The message is intended solely for the addressee(s). If you are not the intended recipient, you are hereby notified that any use, forwarding, dissemination, or reproduction of this message is strictly prohibited and may be unlawful. If you are not the intended recipient, please contact the sender by return e-mail and destroy all copies of the original message.

Tutta bella

Well we are back in Seattle and dinner is likely to be Tutta Bella - pizza, salad, and gelato. What could be better. Ethan is planning on getting filled up with good food. Willa may have been distracted from the outlet shoe store, or maybe not. Trying tinker bell undies in the near futute as a distraction - seems to be working. Ethan is actually helping.

Michael Lapin
Philips Healthcare, Legal Counsel
425-487-7009
michael.lapin@philips.com

This message may be confidential or legally privileged. If you are not the intended recipient, please contact the snder and destroy all copies of the original message.

---

The information contained in this message may be confidential and legally protected under applicable law. The message is intended solely for the addressee(s). If you are not the intended recipient, you are hereby notified that any use, forwarding, dissemination, or reproduction of this message is strictly prohibited and may be unlawful. If you are not the intended recipient, please contact the sender by return e-mail and destroy all copies of the original message.

Homeward bound

On our way home from grandma's. Near Ellensburg and Willa is finally asleep. Ethan is still fighting sleep.
Willa pooped on the potty today and Ethan hit a wiffle ball pretty hard yesterday.
Lots of holiday toys competing for their attention. Willa loves her box of princess books, especially Pocahontas. Ethan seems to favor his autobot and his batmobile.
We were really impressed with Ethan's ability to match cards in SET and Willa putting her new puzzles together.
Good week - two worn out kids.

Michael Lapin
Philips Healthcare, Legal Counsel
425-487-7009
michael.lapin@philips.com

This message may be confidential or legally privileged. If you are not the intended recipient, please contact the snder and destroy all copies of the original message.

---

The information contained in this message may be confidential and legally protected under applicable law. The message is intended solely for the addressee(s). If you are not the intended recipient, you are hereby notified that any use, forwarding, dissemination, or reproduction of this message is strictly prohibited and may be unlawful. If you are not the intended recipient, please contact the sender by return e-mail and destroy all copies of the original message.

Princess and the Frog

Went to a movie with Willa for the first time. Whole family went to see the new Disney movie. Very fun. Willa ended up in Karri's lap and Ethan in mine. Grandma Linda came too. Everyone gave it thumbs up. Ethan ate most of a bag of popcorn, with help from Karri and me. Then to PetSmart to look at fish, birds, and hamsters. Then to Toys R Us - Willa now has a huge Xmas list. Finally, off to Outback to burn our Xmas gift from Grandpa Bob - while there went on a walkabout with the kids. I think the highlight was the brownie sundae.

Michael Lapin
Philips Healthcare, Legal Counsel
425-487-7009
michael.lapin@philips.com

This message may be confidential or legally privileged. If you are not the intended recipient, please contact the snder and destroy all copies of the original message.

---

The information contained in this message may be confidential and legally protected under applicable law. The message is intended solely for the addressee(s). If you are not the intended recipient, you are hereby notified that any use, forwarding, dissemination, or reproduction of this message is strictly prohibited and may be unlawful. If you are not the intended recipient, please contact the sender by return e-mail and destroy all copies of the original message.

Purrball

Ethan still likes to imagine he is a kitten - his name "Little Purrball" to go along with his stuffed dogs who are "Little Furbal".

Willa

At 2 2/3 we may be expecting too much, but man Willa can still throw some fits.  It is often Willa's way or the highway.  The fits are becoming less frequent and we are doing better about laying down the law, but Willa is still a force to be reckoned with.  Mornings are especially challenging.

On the good side, Willa is becoming potty trained.  She pretty much wears underwear during the day and only puts on pull-ups for night and naps.  Occasionally she needs a pull-up so she can stand by the couch (no one can look at her) and squeeze out a poop.  I am thinking by end of January, she may be 100% potty-trained.

Does Willa need a new home

I am probably mis-quoting Ethan from this morning, but we were at breakfast when he asked Karri and I whether we should find a new home for Willa.  It was a particularly Willa morning - up early, rocking and cuddling, not wanting to sit on the potty, not wanting to get dressed, not wanting to eat her breakfast.  You get the picture.  At which point Ethan, mimicking what we say to Daphne, said, "Willa do we need to find you a new home."  Priceless.

Another 2 week delay...

A bunch of quick thoughts in reverse chronological order:
We are off to Kauai - should have seen how excited the kids were when we pulled into Grandma Linda's driveway.

Karri had 2-days of misery with strep. Not a happy situation, but with a trip to Kids Museum and Scinece Center we made it through unscathed.



Halloween was fun - little party att KidsCentre, Ethan as red spiderman, Willa as a pink princess ballerina fairy, Trick-or-Treat on QA Ave, Karri carrying Willa and Michael carrying Ethan, off to the twins for pizza, then Trick-or-treat all the way home.  The Halloween Fairy had a big haul and Ethan got some new legos (3-in-1 creator cars) and Willa got her first Barbie (Cinderella).  Those slippers keep falling off.

Prior Sunday we went to Willa's first play - If You Give A Mouse A Cookie.  Willa liked it, but was a little extra-cuddly.  Ethan was enthralled.  Chocolate milk and chocolate chip cookies are always good at intermission.  Ethan pointed out that this was his third show (Frog and Toad with Steve was his first, and Lion King with Zayde was his second).

Swimming for Ethan and Little Gym for Willa are going well.  Willa is a natural and is really good a tumbling and jumping.

Ethan is signed up for Cascade Ski School - he is "geeked" up to ski.

Prior weekend, we went to the pumpkin patch and got our pumpkins (always seems like it will be more fun than it is), then Willa went to her first storytime with Charles at QA Books.  Ethan was too tired and just wanted some quiet time at home

Willa phrases: Oh no!

Current favorite book and CD: Science Verse for Ethan, Ladybug Girl for Willa.

Willa is still a big fan of being picked up and carried around.  She is also still waking up early (5:30 - 6) and then wanting to hang out, cuddle, and read.  If I wasn't so tired from waking up early, would be super cute.  On Sunday in part due to the time change she fell asleep in the living room chair while watching Blue's Clues while I was making lunch.

Ethan is tired of Ken's Turkey Dinner, is loving riding his bike, and is getting really good at building his legos  Still super sweet.

One month of bike riding

It's been a bit of a busy month as Karri finishes out a mini-busy season. During that time we have done a lot of bike riding at the "usual" playground (Coe), so the bikes have mostly stayed in the back of the car. Ethan now has 2 - 16" bikes, one with Hot Wheels styling that he got from Anthony (who, along with his dads, is moving to Dravus St. -we'll miss them).

We had a trip to Toppenish and the fair. Lots of rides. Both Ethan and Willa had the unlimited rides wristbands - Willa had to stretch to make it appear she met the height minimum. Was a slight issue at the ticket booth, but not a problem for any of the rides. Ethan really liked the roller coaster. I think Karri, Linda, and I each rode it with him.

We joined the Science Center - not too expensive and will give us another rainy day activity.

We signed Ethan up for skiing lessons, which start in January. I am not sure who is more excited, Ethan or Zayde. Ethan will be going to Cascade ski school, same one I went to 30 years ago.

Karri's aunt died, so she went with her family down to Reno for the funeral, which meant I had 2 nights by myself with the kids for the first time. Went smoothly. We are lucky to have such great kids.

On the other hand, Willa still thinks that wake up time is at 6:20, so I have been spending the first 30 minutes of most days reading her stories while Karri gets ready and Ethan sleeps. And, at least once a week, her up time seems to be 5:20 - yikes!

If you call Willa by one of her nicknames Willa-beast, Willa-bean, Wilhelm von Wilhelm, Willie, Wilson, etc. she loves to respond with "I am not X, I am Kathryn Lapin!" Too cute.

More biking pictures...

Thanks Dad for the pictures. In the third one you can see Karri's legs to the left and Dad to the right.

Also, note that Ethan is wearing his Shaun Alexander Seahawks jersey. His favorite player is Matt Hasselback, but Shaun did win the 2005 MVP.

I like to ride my bicylce, I like to ride my bike...

This past weekend was an awesome adventure in parenting.

On Friday morning Ethan was talking about wanting a bigger bike and one without training wheels. So I called a few places but decided that $160 for a new 16" bike was excessive. So I checked with Recycled Cycles and they had one used boys 16" bike for $40. I said perfect and told Karri that I would pick it up on the way home. When I got to the store, which took forever because it is in the U District, they had sold it - I should have had them hold it. When I got home without a bike, Ethan was pretty upset, but we span it that we would go to the Goodwill and let him pick his own. This worked like a charm and he was happy. Meanwhile, I had picked up a new inner tube for his 12" bike, but of course had not picked up the tool necessary to get the tube on.

Saturday came and Karri took Willa to Little Gym, which she loves. While they were doing that, Ethan and I went to the Goodwill. Not a big selection of 16" bikes - basically 3 - two were clearly girls bikes. We got the least girly bike they had. Brought it home, pumped up the tires, cleaned it a little, and lubed it up with WD-40. $7. Ethan then rode it a bit in front of the house with me pushing from the seat or holding the handlebars. Once he was on his own for about 4 feet before crashing into a rock. Oops.

Dad came up later in the afternoon and we had lunch. Then, while Willa was napping, I went out and got the tool to fix the 12" tire - good as new now (so we sent the other 12" bike down to Gig Harbor for Micah). Ethan and Dad were entranced by They Might Be Giants' new kids videos and songs, so I had plenty of time. While Willa was still napping, Dad pushed Ethan to Coe on his new bike. Then, when Willa woke up, we came up on her new'ish bike - inflatable tires roll much better than the solid foam ones.

When we got there Dad was exhausted - and understandably so after pushing a 16" bike with a rider for a half mile. So, it was my turn to push Ethan. This is where it gets good. Ethan quickly got the hang of peddling and steering. So much so that it was hard to keep pushing him and he would get away from me. However, he would look back occasionally to see if I was still holding o, which made him very wobbly. After a short discussion about looking where he was going it happened, he rode on his own for a few feet, then fell. The next time though, he had clearly found his balance point and was riding a two-wheeler on-his-own, no training wheels. WOW!

I think we were all a little surprised at how quickly it all happened for him. But it was awesome. Attached are some pictures of that magic moment.

More pictures...

Pictures from the Fun Forest and Children's Museum

Super-Fun Weekend

I am sure someday Willa and Ethan will tell us we don't do anything fun and we're boring, but hopefully they'll be able to look back at this past week-end and admit that at least once we had fun.
Friday:
KidsCentre was closed for staff day, so Ethan, Willa, and Dad went by ferry to Bainbridge, where we ate ice cream at Mora's (raspberry for Willa and blueberry for Ethan), had pastries at Blackbird, and bought some books at Eagle Harbor (Peter Pan, Sleeping Beauty, Cinderella, and Snow White - Willa loves her princesses). After nap we all went swimming at the Magnolia Pool (nice and warm).
Saturday:
Karri and I ran the Great Urban Race. We had a great time, finished in 3:12, and came in 133rd. If we hadn't made 2 small mistakes (misread one clue and did one stop in a bad sequence), had run the whole way (not realistic), and had skipped a clue (only had to do 11 of 12, but more fun to do all 12), we could have finished in 2:30. Winners were super-fast and one was a 12 year old kid. D'oh! Kudos to my parents who came and watched Ethan and Willa on relatively short notice and Joesph who was our googler. It was fun to spend the day just running around with Karri, my wife, my partner, my love. After we came home, we went to our favorite kid-dining spot Tutta Bella with my parents and with Chris Yarwood and Jessica, his girlfriend, who were in town for the weekend.
Sunday:
Went to Coe playground in morning - good for Karri and I just to stretch our legs and move around a bit. Then, got the great idea (yes, great idea) to go to the FunForest at Seattle Center. But to make it great, we invited Henry and Grace - Ethan's and Willa's friends from KidsCentre. After riding rides for about an hour, we all went to the Children's Museum together. Highlights - Ethan was super-daring and went on the roller coaster, Ethan and Henry skipping with joy after seeing each other, and Willa wearing her sunglasses and taking her blue bear with her on every ride. We hope that Ethan and Henry and Willa and Grace can remain friends long after they are all out of KidsCentre.

Pictures coming soon.

Shout Out to Our #1 Followers

Steve and Diane our clearly our biggest fans. If you don't know them, you can learn all about them through their blogs, which are updated way more often than this one is:

http://www.dianekappablog.com/2009/08/color-inspiration.html
http://greimannkappa.blogspot.com/2009/08/august-20th-st-stephens-day.html

My only concern is that they use their mobile phones (Twitter-style) to update their blogs - I am not sure I trust anyone who Tweets.

Regardless, check out their blogs for the the life of an expat in Budapest (an awesome city) and cross your fingers (on behalf of the Seattle Lapins) that they return to Seattle some day.

Potty Training #2

Willa seems like she will be easier to potty train than Ethan. She poops pretty regularly once a day and likes to tell you she is "poopy" when she has poop in her pull-up. However, last night I did get a little surprise. After putting the kids to bed, I sat down on my chair in the living room and touched something on the seat cushion. I picked it up - brown, slightly oblong, a little smelly - poop! I think it may have been Willa's from when she was wearing her princess underwear and said she was poopy. On the other hand, it could have been Daphne, who may have accidentally shot one out when she was excitedly barking at a passer-by. I am not sure which I would have preferred.

The Jazz Man

Neil Diamond is the Jazz Singer. Jack is known for Jazz Hands. And Willa's favorite princess is Jazz Man, aka Jasmine, from Aladdin. In fact, she loves Jazz Man and the Jazz Man movie so much that she slept with the DVD box on Sunday.

Willa apologizes with feeling

Occasionally Willa can be naughty and sometimes she accidentally hurts Ethan (fortunately, being super-cute it's hard to stay mad at her). If she realizes it, or if we tell her, she will apologize, saying, "I'm sorry Ethan." Recently, she has taken to saying "I'm so sorry Ethan," as though to emphasize how bad she feels. However, a couple of nights ago, after being put to bed, we heard Willa "practicing" her apologies, over and over again, so, maybe she doesn't feel "so sorry".

Camping with Grandma

This past weekend we went camping with Grandma Linda (Friday-Monday). All-in-all, a good time.

Highlights included:

• Willa and Karri slept all three nights together on the high bed;
• Ethan and Michael slept one night in the tent together, one night Ethan was in the camper and Michael was in the tent, and one night together on the low bed in the camper;
• First time wwe got to use our tent that we bought about 2 1/2 years ago - very happy with it - big enough for 4, no problems;
• S'mores - Willa and Ethan both loved them;
• Grandma Linda got Ethan and Willa toy bows and arrows (Ethan had been eyeing one in his toy catalog for weeks (and wanted to use his yard sale money to buy it and was wondering why it wasn't at our house yet)). Ethan played with his pretty much every day;
• Playing in Stafford Creek (refreshing when the temperature was over 90);
• Eating wild huckleberries (of course Ethan said we couldn't use that word so we called them small, round fruits); and
• Reading all of "The Invention of Hugo Cabret"; and
• Using "special" camping gear like backpacks (pink for Willa and blue for Ethan) and headlamps.

Of course hiking itself was not so successful. I think we made it about 50 yards when Willa wanted Karri to carry her. Negotiation - walk for 5 minutes, then Mommy will carry you for 5 minutes - was not so successful and shrieks of "carry me" or "pick me up" could be heard in parts of Oregon and Idaho. After about a half-mile of Karri walking and Willa screaming and following, Willa decided she had had enough and lay on the ground and threw a fit. After 15 minutes of fit throwing (while Karri and Linda picked huckleberries close by), Willa picked herself up, dusted herself off, and "like a big girl" walked back to the trailhead. During this time, Ethan had decided he had had enough and wanted to hold my hand and walk back to the trailhead, so we did but we made a number of mini-adventures to look at butterfly's, creeks, or berry patches.

Daphne enjoyed camping, especially all of the extra food (including half a package of beef jerky). She is becoming a bit naughty in her old age. Of course, she loved rolling in the dirt. And, it is always interesting how much less wildlife you see when Daphne is around.

On the plus-side, unlike last year, I did not have to get up at 5 in the morning and stroll Willa up the road for an hour or so to help her chill out.

Not a lot new, but...

Things have been a lot of the same at the Lapins lately.
Ethan eats pancakes almost every morning for breakfast, followed by Jeff Corwin watching, then off to school, home for a couple rides around the block on either his scooter or his bike, stories especially the Fog Mound trilogy, then bed.
Willa is still jumping off the bed and being her crazy lovable self. I think she sometimes likes to be a little naughty. Every Monday is pink dress day. Humpty Dumpty spoons and forks are very important to her. She likes books, but especially pink ones, so Fancy Nancy is a hit. I think Karri said that if she wasn't so cute, she'd be pretty bratty, but it is hard to get angry with her, and of course she knows it.
This weekend we are off to a Mariner's game with our PEPS group. Willa has never been, but Ethan has been each of the last two years. It is Ichiro jersey day, so we will need to make sure we get there on time, although we will likely leave early.

I like to ride my bicycle...

Fourth of July weekend was big at the Lapin's house.
Friday was pretty typical with a trip to the playground, scootering and WeeRiding, followed by a trip to Macrina's Bakery. Karri got a little break and got to ride Grover. Afternoon, no
Saturday was go-go all day. In the morning we did a great hike just past North Bend - Twin Falls. Daphne came too. Picnic lunch. Dipped our feet in the river. We estimated that Ethan hiked about 2 3/4 miles and Willa about 2 1/2.
After getting home, Michael went to a memorial for Dick, who lived across the street. Explaining to Ethan that Dick had died was tough.
Then, when Willa woke up after about half an hour, it was off to Mollie Moon's for ice cream - honey lavender, strawberry, scout mint, and salted caramel.
Then, over to the wading pool at the digger park in Wallingford.
Then, the twins, Nick and Parker, came over to play with Ethan and run through the sprinkler.
Sunday was less crazy-busy. We were at the playground by about 9:30, but that is relatively late for us. It was great because we hooked up the "third-wheel" to my bike and Ethan and I took a long ride all over Queen Anne. He loves it. Then, later in the afternoon, when Willa had woken up from her nap, she decided she wanted to ride a bike too, so we took Ethan's old 12" bike and attached a push-bar and away she went. She is a natural and will probably be going full tilt without any assistance by this weekend.

Ladies Man

So at the oh so young age of 4, little Ethan has become quite the hot commodity among 4 year old girls. A couple of weeks ago he declared that he was going to marry Kate, but that his girlfriend was Anika. Ethan dropped Kate last week when he declared that now he was marrying Anika and moving to China (and according to Ethan, he is serious and not kidding).

Will this one last longer than a week? All signs point to yes. There are strong indications that maybe Ethan is serious. First, they play with animals together every morning. Second, they go to the bathroom together. Nothing says romance more than sitting on the toilet together. Third, and the biggest indication (according to his teacher Phyllis) is that they are crossing a hurdle that many four year couples never do -- they are playing at the playground together. Generally the playground is very segregated, boys play with boys, and girls with girls. But Ethan and Anika are playing together in the sandbox, holding hands while riding bikes, and giving each other rides in makeshift wagons.

Ahhhhh, true love. At least for now. Rumor has it that there is yet another four year old girl vying for Ethan's affection. We are all hoping that Ethan's appeal to age appropriate ladies does not peak at age four.

Injections

As most of you know, I have psoriatic arthritis (fortunately a relatviely mild case). I have been taking Enbrel for about 4 1/2 years via a weekly injection. I have a vasovagal reflex and almost passed out the first time I got the shot and then when I tried to do it myself. So, for the past 4 1/2 years, Karri has done my injections. She does not like doing it, but she has been awesome in always being there for me.

However, I am excited to report the coolest new thing in my life: Enbrel® (etanercept) SureClick® 50 mg/mL autoinjector.

I can do it myself, it hurts less, and I don't actually see the needle.

Pink Song

Yes, songs can be pink - according to Willa. And the one that she will listen to, spin to, and dance to is We Got the Beat by The Go Gos. Good thing the iPod has a repeat button because that is also the only song she will listen to. You can listen to the song here.

Haircut

It's official - more grey than dark. Got my hair cut today, so I can be arm candy at Karri's 20th high school reunion. Happy to have it, but it's very grey (or is that gray?).

Father's Day Weekend

Saturday - brewed beer with Dad. It was great to spend 3 1/2 hours catching up, shooting the shit, and brewing beer. Most of the time when we hang out, there are so many other people or there is something to do, this was just us and mellow, which was really nice. On the way up, Dad picked up Willa's big-girl bed and on the way back we picked up a twin mattress at Costco.

Sunday - by 9:30 we had taken Willa's crib apart, built the big girl bed, and made it. By 10, Willa was jumping off the edge, rolling on the bed, and very excited by her "pink" bed. Ethan and Karri went to Up! - the Disney movie (PG). He loved it, but when they came back he had Karri tell me the whole story. While they were gone, Willa and I went to Top Pot and we both had pink doughnuts; we both ate our whole doughnuts. Then when she went down for her nap (she had a little lunch), I took her pacifiers and told her big girls sleep in big girl beds and don't use pacifiers. So far she hasn't asked for one since. Woo Hoo!

Of course there was lots of scootering and a couple trips to the playground. And our monthly trip to Costco.

Did you see that beautiful, beautiful animal?

Ethan did - he likes to channel his idol, Jeff Corwin, when he is playing with his rope (which he calls a cobra) and in the bath when playing with his penguins, seals, and whales.

Who leaves a country packed with ponies to come to a non-pony country?

Willa and Ethan named Grandma Linda's ponies:

• Pink Scooter Skateboard and
• Rocket Satellite

I think they even know which name goes with which pony.

I think I am trouble given how much Willa likes ponies, but fortunately between Linda and Nana, there will be no lack of ponies in her world.

Hopper likes 2 Scoops

Willa is a big fan of hopping, so one of her nicknames is "Hopper". She likes to jump off things like the last stair anywhere and anytime the flooring changes in the house, especially between the kitchen and dining room.

Willa also likes raisins and she can be seen many mornings carrying a little yogurt container full of raisins and happily munching them. However, as 2 is her favorite number, she always likes to make sure there are 2 handfuls of raisins in her cup and will let you know if there are not enough in there when you hand it to her. Some mornings she asks for those raisins as you are picking her up out of her crib.

I'm # 5

Last night Ethan ranked the kissers in our family:

1. Mommy
2. Daphne
3. Willa
4. Daphne
5. Daddy

This morning Ethan took his first packed lunch to school. We put it in his backpack as he doesn't have a lunchbox yet. He was so excited and concerned that it would be forgotten at home that he went downstairs immediately after getting dressed, opened the fridge, and put it on. He was not going to take it off until he got to school.

Pretty in Pink...

Thanks to the Psychedelic Furs and John Hughes for creating the theme of Willa's 2nd year.
Or, as we like to say sometimes - today is being brought to you by the number 2 and the color pink.
Or, as we also joke - pink is the word, is the way we are feeling.

Feel free to ask if you don't get the jokes.

I like to ride my bicycle

Ethan is really trying to learn to ride a bike. He will go around the block 3 or 4 times with me pushing him on his bike with no training wheels. However, on Karri's advice, we are going to try a skuut bike (or a coaster bike). However, before we do that I am going to take the pedals off of his bike and lower the seat to replicate the experience without an additional wheeled item in the garage. Yesterday we startled a robin and almost had it hit us (literally about 3 inches from my nose).

Scooters are going well for both of them as they both seem really confident on them.

Cinderella

Willa loves Cinderella. She is copying big brother and peeing on the potty (when we put here there), so we got her pull-ups. The pull-ups have pictures of princesses on them. Between that and having seen the movie once, Willa's favorite princess is Cinderella. I like to call her Cinderwilly. She giggles and happily shows anyone who asks her fancy pull-ups.

Willa's Vices

Willa reports that the following are "tasty":
Beer (had a couple of sips of mine last night) and
Coffee (likes mochas, but iced lattes are also a hit)

Math, and other scary subjects...

Just read this op/ed column: http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/opinion/2009278185_opinb31mass.html
First, I am worried about the quality of education, especially on the math front, that Willa and Ethan will get.
Second, note that the author is one of Karri's favorite NPR commentators.
Third, reminds me why I will likely run for school board at some point in the future. People elevating process over kids is a travesty.

Zayde sent us this phot of trampoline time at AJs a couple weeks ago. That was fun.

Tyler Johnson

We love Tyler - source of a lot of joy in the Lapin household. This may come as a surprise since we don't talk with him much (who does talk to teenagers much besides other teenagers), but his love of sports combined with his lack of love of eating meals makes him a fun person.

Despite growing up in Tacoma, his favorite team in no sport was the Seahawks, Mariners, or Sonics (RIP). I think most humorous is his tendency to follow front runners (although admittedly he then keeps following them) - has Tyler ever followed a bad team?

If you are ever talking with him - what does he think of his Red Sox's steroid-tainted titles: http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=simmons/090507&sportCat=mlb

Mother's Day! Or was it...

Mother's day was this past weekend, but it may have seemed like any other day. Kids wake up at 6 am (too early; you'd think we'd be used to it - not!), breakfast (oatmeal - or is it eatmeal, hard to tell when Willa says it), then off to Top Pot (2 ovaltine latttes and three doughnuts - 2 with sprinkles) and Big Howe. Then home for lunch, then Willa naps while Ethan plays legos, Karri does laundry (sorry lovey), and Michael goes to Costco (gets new tires). A day like any other Sunday, but we did have some extra fun...

After Willa gets up it is off to Gig Harbor to see AJ, Marcela, Tyler, Micah, and Kaia, then Mom and Dad show up and we all chip in and put together a great meal (thanks to AJ for manning the grill - awesome). Trampoline was a big hit. Thanks for hosting - we had a great time. Here is the gang.

Questions for Mom(s)

I saw this on the Motherlode blog - check out the link on the left. All the Mom's who read this want to post comments.

What’s the one thing you would have done differently as a mom?
Why did you choose to be with my dad?
In what ways do you think I’m like you?
What do you like best about each of your kids?
Is there anything you have always wanted to tell me but never have?
Do you think it’s easier or harder to be a mother now than when you were raising our family?
Is there anything you regret not having asked your parents?
What’s the best thing I can do for you right now?
Is there anything that you wish had been different between us — or that you would still like to change?
When did you realize you were no longer a child?

Grandma and Grandpa and Grandpa

Grandma Linda and Grandpa John came over a couple of days in advance to help celebrate Ethan's birthday. Willa and Ethan get so excited when they know Grandma and Grandpa are coming to visit - their faces practically light up. Willa is now a big fan of calling Grandma on the phone to say "I love you." Ethan and Grandpa JOhn and Grandpa Bob went to the Museum of Flight. Big hit!

Birthday

Well, Ethan had his 4th birthday at Pump-It-Up as planned. Many of his school friends and Nick and Parker showed up. Cupcakes were a hit and bouncing was fun. Here are some photos from the event.

It was tough to wait for everyone to arrive and the party to start.

Rabbit poop

Almost every morning and most afternoons Willa wants raisins. You have to put enough into the cup so she can't see the bottom, then she happily carries around her cup and munches on raisins for the next 1/2 hour.

Karri thinks they look like rabbit poop and can't understand how come Willa is so fond of them.

Fortunately, recent news indicates that the raisins are good for her teeth - surprise.

My little Eph

This morning Ethan heard a name as Ulla and I said that I had known an Ulla in college. His response - "At Williams College; that's where I am going to go."

I am so proud.

Brushing Teeth

Willa used to be an OK tooth brusher - she'd bite the toothbrush and preferred sucking toothpaste off of the brush (or straight from the tube) - but lately tooth brushing has become a full contact sport. You have to pin her arms down and lie her on her back to have any chance at all. Last night I took a right foot to the face while brushing her teeth. Karri and I debate who has to brush her teeth each night.

On the plus side, when it's done she does like to spit.

Scooters

Ethan's birthday gift from us was scooters, which he had asked for. However, being a good and wise brother he also asked for a scooter for Willa "so he wouldn't have to share". Ethan's is blue and Willa's, per Ethan's request, is pink. Good choice for Willa. Ethan has ridden his all the way to Coe. I have carried Willa and hers all the way to Coe. But both of them are getting better and better at riding their scooters. The playground at Coe seems to be a good place for scooter riding and has the advantage of the playground right there. Nice thing about the scooters (relative to bikes), I can fit two scooters under the double stroller for when we are too worn out to make it back on our own.

18 Days Later

Busy season has ended and we have had Ethan's 4th birthday. Lots to report. Probably a couple of entries worth. Will work backwards from the most recent:

Ethan is back doing swimming lessons. He suggested that he might not want to this past weekend, but was "bribed" with a trip to the movie "Earth". I think Karri's recap was that it reminded her a lot of the BBC Earth videos but was cool to see on the big screen. Ethan really liked the penguins even though they were only on screen for about 2 minutes.

Willa is becoming a big girl with big opinions and big emotions. A couple of her favorite things - dresses and pink - put them together in the form of a pink dress and she will shine with happiness and spin around and say it is pretty. Try to put her in something else (non-pink or non-dress) and you are likely to have a mini-showdown followed by some tears (maybe hers, maybe yours). this morning she tried on three dresses (including one that she had picked out) before settling on the one she would wear for the day.

Willa loves to jump, Ethan (with Karri's help) just picked up the skill over the weekend. We think Willa got jumping from throwing tantrums.

Willa is getting more words and connecting them into little sentences. Makes talking to her much easier. Of course it is still about what Willa wants - "carry downstairs", "blankie, binky, dolly", "Daddy are you?", "read Dora", "potty" - yes, Willa has seen her brother peeing on the potty (our nightly pee race) and now wants to potty herself and get a drink of water before bed like her brother. She like to order people around and needs to be constantly reminded to say "please" or "peas".

Ethan is a huge fan of Jeff Corwin and loves to watch a little Jeff Corwin every morning before school.

Willa has started to do puzzles like Ethan - she is not a puzzle-master yet, but is getting better.

Yesterday was haircuts and Tutta Bella. Good times. Willa and Ethan both had gelato - chocolate for Willa and Raspberry for Ethan.

Weekend of Fun

Next week is Ethan's birthday, but this weekend should be packed with fun too:
Friday: early pick up from preschool, then to a playground in Ballard at the St. Alphonsus school that we hadn't been to before (Ethan really like the tire swing, Willa the slide), then home for dinner (stir fry with rice noodles, beef, broccoli, and baby corn - not a big hit, but it was good), then watch part of Dumbo, then stories (3 by Mo Willems), then bed.
Saturday: french toast for breakfast, prep dinner (slow cooker chili from Cook's Illustrated), egg hunt at the QA Community Center, swimming lessons for Ethan (he got in off the waitlist - whew!), while Ethan is swimming Willa and other parent will troll Queen Anne Ave for fun (maybe go to Urban Kids Play), lunch (TBD), die eggs in the afternoon, then play, eat, then promised either end of Dumbo or beginning of Jungle Book
Sunday: pancakes (maybe with bananas and walnuts), down to Nana and Zayde's for an egg hunt at the farm and hanging out with Micah, Kaia, Marcela, and AJ, lunch, and home in the afternoon.

PS: On Wednesday we did a Seder through Kavana. Willa loved chopped liver and parsley in salt water. Ethan loved kosher hot dogs and meeting new kids.

PPS: Really looking forward to April 15 as are Karri and the kids.

Baby Animals

Karri and I were talking about Ethan and his imagination. Over the last year or so, he has deemed himself to be, in no particular order, a:
baby seal (after Seaworld)
fawn (after seeing Bambi)
kitten
puppy (in honor of his stuffed animals)
joey (after Who Are You Baby Kangaroo)
penguin (after Tacky and the Emperor)
There may be more, but I think that is it. When he has been in that character mode, you must (1) refer to him as the appropriate animal, not Ethan and (2) must tell him that his food is the appropriate item, not dino nuggets from Costco but fish balls or something similar.

Kid Pics

Since we actually took some pictures and downloaded them, here are a few from the past month:

Happy Sunday

We had a long weekend with Karri hard at work. We went to the zoo twice (once because Ethan was on the happy list on Friday and once with PEPS). Saturday was in the rain. Sunday was nice (picture attached is of Willa climbing on the lion statue).

Fun weekend activity, Willa peed on the potty for the first time and told us she had to go before doing so. I don't have a picture of it, but here is a picture of Ethan on the potty - note that he is reading on the potty like a good Lapin man.

Taking advantage of corporate donations

I love being able to turn what I already do - buying Cheerios - into something good.

Help - O - Bot

"I am a help-o-bot, take me to your leader!"

Today is Wacky Wednesday and I built Ethan a robot costume out of a cardboard box and duct tape (which is great for everything but ducts); took me over an hour. I was hoping he'd love it and become a "help-o-bot", but the minute he saw it this morning he burst into tears and said something to the effect of "that's not right, that's not what I wanted." It was hard for him to explain the problem while crying and hard for me to understand what he was saying through his tears. However, I spent a half hour this morning trying to make it fit him better - especially the head opening (which was too small and may have scratched him a little).

Interesting that something can go on relatively easily, but then be really difficult to get off.

Karri was publicly supportive of the robot costume, but was right when she went to bed saying, "this isn't going to work."

Hopefully, he will enjoy wacky Wednesday, but it didn't start out too well.

PS: If it makes it home, we'll try to get some pictures.

PPS: Off topic - note the intersection (not the intersect) of two of my favorite economists.

Word on the Street...

Residue!

I used residue in a sentence this morning and Ethan asked what it meant. I told him it is schmutz, stuff left behind. Then we identified residue - melted cheese on the bottom of the toaster and, my favorite, jam on Ethan's face after eating toast, waffles, or pancakes.

He then used it two or three times this morning.

I am so proud.

Things that I worry about...

Willa - being 15 and telling Ethan that either he needs to take her to a party or she'll take the car herself. Ethan tells her that is against the rules and that Mom and Dad wouldn't like it, but she pretty much brow beats him into taking her.

Ethan - being bored, or not challenged in kindergarten, and thus he loses some of his love of learning or "wastes" a year. Right now he is such a sponge, I just don't want to waste this time.

Boogers

According to Karri, most afternoons on the way home from school, Willa will ask for a wipe (not a tissue, has to be a wet one) to wipe her nose, then will wipe and blow her nose and say "hi boogie". After that, she folds up the tissue, throws it on the floor of the car and says, "bye boogie". Good times!

Parenting hot buttons

Vaccinations - I am always surprised how many kids in Washington are not vaccinated and the reasons why. Check out this story and this one. I think economists call this a free rider problem.

Reading & Math - I am not worried about potty-training (although those who know how we did it with Ethan may think we were (rewards, treats, party, light-up shoes, big boy underwear), does anyone know a 15 year old that isn't? But I do focus on reading and math as there are a lot of 15 year olds who are illiterate or unable to do math.

Breast Milk - I think Karri is awesome for having fed or expressed for 12 months with each kid. It was not easy. I helped some (washed a lot of pump parts and bottles AND did night bottle feedings), but Karri did at least 80% of the work. In the books I have read, feeding your kids breast milk is one of the few things you can easily do that has been statistically shown to have benefits. Here is the best book that I have read. However, I acknowledge that some people feel differently and debate the issue, but most of this is about the feasability from a parent's perspective and rarely about the science. On the other hand, sometimes it is about what is in the formula that should weigh even more heavily in favor of breastfeeding. Another factor (knowing I am cheap) is that fomula is expensive, even at Costco.

Home births - too many things can go wrong (even if they rarely do), so I am against home births. If you are a more crunchy, granola, alternative lifestyle sort, then try a birthing center, but make sure it is close to a hospital.

As a parent, to quote my Family Law professor - it's all about what's in the best interests of the children. We try to follow this maxim and it raises my hackles when others don't. Sometimes it's not clear what is in the best interests and reasonable people can disagree, but when it's clear, it sets me off when it's ignored.

Dark Times & Lion King

Losing the P-I hurts me, but with the current financial meltdown (recession? definitely. depression? maybe), one question that pops up as a parent is how to tell kids about depressing, traumatic, scary things (here is what another parent said). Thankfully Karri and I have good jobs, but I know we think about how to tell the kids about things like death (after reading a story, seeing a movie, or seeing Simba's dad die in the Lion King (see it ties)). There is a lot of research out there, and interestingly it often relates back to what your goal is when raising your kids. So, what are your goals/purposes in raising your kids? I like the answer of "raising them to be happy and successful as adults." But now how do we get there? Thoughts?

Dark Day in Seattle

It's a dark day in Seattle as we lose one of our valued institutions and a part of our lives for the past 12 years. Last year the Sonics, this year the P-I. The P-I is moving online, but it's not the same. We'll start getting the Times, but it's not the same.

As Thomas Jefferson said, "Were it left to me to decide whether we should have a government without newspapers, or newspapers without a government, I should not hesitate a moment to prefer the latter."

Lion King

Ethan and Zayde went to see the Lion King on Sunday - early birthday present from Nana and Zayde. Big hit. Always nice for the kids to spend extended 1-on-1 time with their grandparents - can't happen enough. Lots of thanks. Sorry for the post-event meltdown.

Zayde

Zayde just got back from doing volunteer cardiology work in Cambodia. We are really proud of him for doing it.

Cheap

Yes, I am cheap. However, a number of stories in the mainstream press are glorifying cheap. As people who know me well can attest, I love free stuff. Here is my latest link to free stuff - http://www.kashi.com/picturehunt. Enjoy

Some quick thoughts from us

Willa has us all wrapped around her finger, but Ethan and Dad particularly. Karri noticed that Willa can convince me to read to her for an extra 20 minutes in the evening compared to how quickly Karri can get Willa to go night-night. And, if Willa wants something or looks like she is about to cry, Ethan will often giver her what she wants, like a musical instrument, stuffed animal, or blanket.

Last night Ethan was a little upset, no one is quite sure what about, and it was really cute to see Willa give him a hug and kiss. Of course, Willa is a big fan of kisses and they tend to be a little sloppy and on the mouth.

Ethan and I were reading last night, the story was Pippo the Fool, and the main character has a nickname. I was trying to explain nicknames and reminded him that we used to call him "Eagle Eyes" for his ability to spot presents or books that we had hidden for future giving. He responded that his nickname was in fact, Gumdrop Pass, which we think refers to his skill at Candyland.

Things Karri and I talk about (as parents) - how can we ensure that the kids have friends (Ethan came home one day saying Henry didn't want to be his friend anymore, fortunately his boyfriend's back), will the kids ever eat a meal we make (a nightly struggle), and where is the sweet spot between over-scheduled and missing out on doing the fun activities.

Personally - I am saddened by the upcoming closure of the P-I. But am glad that, even as we get to the end of days, they are still fighting the good fight. When the P-I closes, I am concerned about who will be the watchdog of the people - who will speak truth to power - who will be the fourth branch of government. And what happens if we are a one newspaper or, if the Times closes too, a no newspaper town.

Oh My Oh My Dinosaurs

Soccer didn't happen as Ethan decided (a) he was not feeling good and (b) wanted to see the dinosaurs, so Ethan, Willa, and Dad went to the Burke Museum this morning for the museum's annual dinosaur/fossils exhibition (1 day a year just doesn't seem sufficient, but who am I to judge). It was a madhouse. To avoid a long line (and waiting in the snow), we bought an annual membership ($5 off). Now we just have to make this one of our regular destinations - along with the Zoo, the Aquarium, and the Children's Museum.

Lunch today was green themed - 6 kiwis and pesto pasta.

Off to the library later.

Tonight is popcorn and movie night and tomorrow there is a birthday party at Pump It Up and maybe breakfast with Zayde and Nana. Now you know our whole weekend (and most weekends during busy season) in a nutshell.

Jam

The kids love Grandma Linda's homemade jam. Ethan loves toast with jam for breakfast or waffles with jam or frenchtoast with jam. No matter which it is, he never eats the edges/crust. Willa likes to suck the jam off of whatever she is "eating", sometimes she gets some bread or waffle too, but not always. The two of them always end up with sticky hands and faces that need a good washcloth before they are back to being "shana punims".

Daphne is a big fan of the leftovers.

Speaking of bread and jam reminds me of one of Karri's favorite books that Ethan read over and over againg about 6 months ago and is terribly cute, with a good message: Bread and Jam for Frances.

Good read...

In these dark financial times (recession), with so many crooks and scoundrels (CEOs and others). It is refreshing to read someone who just tells it like it is. So, without further ado, the latest words of wisdom from the Oracle of Omaha.

Birthday Party

Willa turned 2 yesterday. We had her party on Saturday with Grandma Linda and Nana in attendance. Pretty much amounted to cupcakes (I think I ate 3 over the weekend, yum!), a quick song, and presents. Last night I was going to sing "Happy Birthday" to Willa and she said, "no singing", so we recited "Happy Birthday" together, then had a dance party to 80's hits. Willa loves to dance.

Pictures to come.