So How Are They Getting Along?

People frequently ask how Riley and Colin get along with each other. They answer is they act just like you'd expect a brother and sister to act. They watch each others back in public and shove each other in the back when they get home. Riley likes to tell people, "This is my brother, Colin." Colin will likewise point to Riley and utter, "I-eeee." They can fight like cats and dogs but can also be a great comfort to one another. Recently, while playing around the house, Colin bumped his head on a doorway. He started to whimper, and Riley ran over to sooth him. She did not witness his injury but decided for some reason that he must have hurt his finger. She rubbed it and gave it a kiss, telling him not to cry. He was quite happy about this attention. When he noticed I was watching, he must have wanted additional sympathy because resumed his whimpering and ran to me holding his "injured" finger aloft. 

Here is a video I recently shot of the kids. They had been playing happily together with a pizza box (Why do I bother with toys?) so I decided to capture a scene

 of blissful harmony in our home. This, naturally, was the result. 

Here are some recent random pictures of the kids.

Colin quickly switches between being "niiiiii" to the cats and trying to run them over with his dump truck. Maebh is the most tolerant of the three. 

Riley and Maebh have a close bond. Maebh can often be found cuddling with Riley on the couch or curled up on her bed at night. 

Colin was so proud for putting on a hat and gloves all by himself. 

What a doll. (If you look carefully, you can see Hobbes' head sticking out from underneath the chair.)

Jeff took the kids out to play in the snow. Riley loves rolling around and making snow angels as is evident from all the snow on her suit. Colin didn't really know what to think of all the white stuff and basically stood right where Jeff put him and look confused. It could have been because I had him bundled up like Randy on "A Christmas Story" and he just couldn't move very well. 

Riley is quite skilled on the computer. She loves to play games on the Playhouse Disney and PBS Kids websites.

Jeff has taken up photography as a hobby. He took these pictures of the kids while experimenting with his new flash.

And now for some Riley quotes:

Riley (looking at photos of my parents): Why are they kissing?

Me: It's their wedding. They're getting married.

Riley: I want to get married.

Me: You do? Who are you going to marry?

Riley: Jesus. 

Riley: Mommy, are you OK?

Me: Yes, I just sneezed.

Riley: No, you're not OK. You are very sick.

Me: I'm fine. I just had a little tickle in my nose.

Riley (very insistent): No, you are sick. You have a bad cold and your head hurts and your nose is running and your tummy feels yucky. 

Riley is becoming a bit of a hypochondriac.

Christmas Morning

We had a quiet Christmas (relatively speaking) at our house. Riley woke us up a little after seven to inform us that the sun was up. This is her signal that she is allowed to get out of bed. She was excited about the gifts under the tree and was disappointed to learn that she had to wait for her brother to wake up before she could begin to open them. Once Colin woke up and both kids had their morning chocolate milk, the tearing of paper began. Despite the fact that this is Colin's first Christmas home, he seemed to know exactly what to do with a wrapped gift. Both kids were very appreciative of their gifts. My parents came over later in the morning for brunch and the kids were thrilled to show off their new toys. I'm happy to report that several weeks after Christmas, the toys are still being enjoyed. Riley likes to use her Tag reading pen during rest time and Colin loves to play with his "guys" and their construction equipment.

Riley is trying to wait patiently for Colin to get up.

Colin really liked his fire truck. He was quite content to play with it still in the box. 

"I've got the sitting part- now how do I make it spin?"

"Do you think Switchfoot needs another band member?"

These electric toothbrushes were a big hit. The kids seem to think they're toys. Nothing like a little covert oral hygiene. 

There's No Place Like Home for the Holidays

It's been way too long since my last post, so I've got some catching up to do. Here are some of our Christmas festivities. My mom, my sister-in-law Robin and I got together before Christmas for some baking. We were able to crank out quite a few goodies. We let Riley and my niece Maria get in on the fun too by decorating some cookies. I think more frosting than cookies were consumed in the process, but they seemed to enjoy the activity.

Riley was very careful with the placement of the sprinkles (which were quickly picked off and eaten.)

Maria actually ate the whole cookie, unlike her cousin who just licked all the frosting off.

On the Saturday before Christmas, the whole family met at my parents' house. I love our family gatherings. We are such an informal, laid-back group. Common topics of conversation are deer hunting, stupid stunts (whether performed by a family member or someone we know), and bodily functions. Some people have turkey or goose for their meal, but we had our traditional Coccia House Christmas pizza. I love my family!!!

Here's some of the family getting ready to open gifts. Pictured are Dad, Justin, Riley, me, Maria, Mom, Richard and Aunt Pam.

Riley and Maria both received princess costumes.

Dad, Richard, Justin, Grandpa, Riley, Mom, me, Grandma, Aunt Pam, Maya and Robin

I love this photo of my beautiful sister-in-law and new niece enjoying her first Christmas.

Here are the young, hip, twenty-something cousins, Cara, Katy and Morgan. Katy and Morgan are getting married in the spring but I already consider Katy my cousin-in-law. (Is that a real word?) 

"But they're cousins - identical cousins" 

This isn't the best picture of Colin and I, but I wanted to show the cute outfit he was originally wearing because . . .

Colin ended up wearing this lovely outfit by the end of the night. The poor little guy suffered a massive diaper failure, and naturally I had just removed the spare change of clothes from the diaper bag a day or two before. I had to put him in a hoodie that Riley had received as a gift. One day he will look back at this photo of himself in nothing but a diaper and his sisters purple velvet shirt and cringe, but for now, he doesn't seem to mind.

I will leave you with this cute video. Grandma and Grandpa started dancing to some music and Colin just had to get in on the action. 

Perry Pie Pat and This and That

At the beginning of October, Riley and I took a road trip out to Illinois for my ten year college reunion. I was not looking forward to the long ride until my friend Becky suggested that we ride out together. She was taking her kids out to see her family. Suddenly traveling with a three-year-old didn't seem so daunting. I wish I could say that Riley and Ethan kept each other entertained and we had a peaceful ride, but my little drama queen put on quite a production in the back seat. I still enjoyed chatting with Becky, and luckily Becky knows the location of every McDonald's playland between here and Momence. One of the funnier moments of the trip happened when Ethan composed an original song which Riley quickly picked up on. She still requests that we sing "Perry Pie Pat" at bedtime. Here it is for your listening enjoyment.

I had a great time at my reunion. My three college roommates, Jeni, Karin, and Ruth, were all able to come. These guys are some of the best friends I've ever had, and we rarely get too see each other because we're spread out all over the country. Riley enjoyed spending time with the gang too. She remembered Karin from her visit last year and couldn't wait to see her again.

Riley was thrilled with the "heaven room" in the Billy Graham Center.

I was grateful for the special time Riley and I had together. She kept saying, "You're going to take care of me? Daddy is taking care of Colin back home?" She got to be an only child again for a couple of days.

Riley and Karin hanging out in the New Stupe.

Here are all four roommate: Ruth, Jeni, me, and Karin. We're lined up in height order just like we used to back in the day. This is a pretty awful picture if me but it's the only one I have of all of us together. 

WARNING: The following paragraph contains medical content. If the word "scalpel" makes you queasy, you might just want to skip this information. 

A few days after the reunion, I had a hysterectomy. This is the first time I've had a major surgery so I wasn't really sure what to expect, but I knew it needed done and wanted to get it over with and be recovered by Thanksgiving. The surgery went well. My doctor told me the incision had to be enlarged twice because "da big U" was as large as honeydew melon due to all my fibroids. I had to spend five hours in the recovery room while I waited for a room to open up, but I was pretty out of it and didn't really mind. I spent most of the first day drifting in and out of sleep. I spent all of the next day in the hospital. Despite the morphine doing nothing for me, I still managed to enjoy the day. I had nothing to do but lay around, read magazines, and watch TV. That may sound boring to some, but it was like a vacation for a mom with two young kids. I was released from the hospital the following morning. The hardest parts about recovery has been the fatigue and not being able to pick the kids up. Now that I'm six weeks post-surgery, I'm not that tired anymore and I can finally do some lifting. 

This was Colin's first Halloween. I planned ahead for once and bought the kids' costumes before I had my surgery. Riley was a queen. Her only requirement for a costume was that it have a wand. I found a knight costume for Colin that he looked so darn cute in, and it was a nice compliment to Riley's attire. My bother and sister-in-law came over with my nieces on Halloween and we all went trick-or-treating together. Robin and I brought Colin and Maya back after a couple blocks (Maya had a cold, Colin was getting tired, and I was getting sore.) Jeff and Mike took the big girls out for a while longer. Riley and Maria returned victorious with a load of loot. 

Princess Maria, Queen Riley and Sir Colin 

And now a few recent Riley quotes"

Riley: What are you singing, Mommy?

Me: I'm singing about God.

Riley: Why?

Me: Because it makes God happy when we sing songs about how good he is.

Riley: Oh. Does God live in Illinois?

Me: Uh, no. He lives in heaven.

(Jeff latter reminded me that Riley had been in the "heaven room" at Wheaton and must have assumed that heaven was in Illinois.)

After church last Wednesday, I took Riley around to look at the Christmas trees in the halls. She loved the nativity sets under some of the trees and pointed out who everyone was. That night at bedtime, we sang "The Wise Man Built his House Upon the Rock." The next day, Riley asked, "Did the wise man build his house before or after he gave Jesus presents?" I love the way she thinks.

The Fair, the Tail End of Ike, and the First Day of School

It has been way too long since I last updated my blog, but you will see in these next few updates that I have some good excuses. The first good excuse is that my computer died, complete with banshee like wailing.

The first big event to write about is our yearly pilgrimage to the Wayne County Fair. "Why is the county fair a big deal?" you might ask. You are obviously not from Wayne County if you ask such a question. The fair is the single biggest event of the year. Everyone and their third-cousin-once-removed is at the fair. When I taught, I didn't even bother introducing new concepts that week because more than half my class was out the entire week even if they were only showing their steer on Tuesday afternoon. 

This was Colin's first fair, and he seemed to thoroughly enjoy it. At this age, the fair is all about the animals. We spent the bulk of our time wandering through the barns. Colin did his best to imitate the animal sounds which all resembled his dog sound, "Bouff, bouff." Riley, as the big sister, felt the need to educate him on the finer points of animal mimicking. "No, Colin, the sheep says 'Baaaaa' not 'Woof.'" She eventually gave up and asked to go on the rides. 

This was the first year that Riley got to try out any of the rides. When I was a kid, my brother and I were never allowed to ride any of the rides at the fair. Our parents were convinced we'd be killed when the hastily erected amusements would shed a bolt or two and fling us into oblivion. When we got a little older, our grandparents took us to the fair and permitted us to ride whatever we wanted as well as eat every deep fried delicacy and sugar coated concoction imaginable. It was with these fond memories that I sent my daughter off to ride her first "spin-and-pukes." She had been very enthusiastic about riding the kiddie coaster until she heard some children screaming on it and declared it, "too loud." Instead, she chose the SUVs, the Batman planes, and the Jr. ferris wheel. 

I'm sure this ride will one day be replaced with hybrids.

Colin was pretty excited about the fair fries. So was I for that matter.

You might think that Ohio is a pretty safe place to live when it comes to natural disasters. We have the occasional tornado and flood, but it's not like we live in California where you're just asking for your home to be destroyed by wildfires, earthquakes, tsunamis, or Arnold Schwarzenegger. That's why I was surprised when the remnants of Hurricane Ike blew through Orrville and turned our front yard from full to partial shade. Our property is surrounded by six maple trees that were probably planted over a hundred years ago when the house was built. Every one of them lost major branches. Jeff and our buddy Mike took care of the clean up. I'm thinking of getting Jeff a chainsaw for Christmas.

Orrville or the jungle?

Two days after the storm, Riley started preschool. She's been talking about this for months. Every time we'd drive past the church, she'd exclaim, "There's my school!" She enjoyed discussing all the activities she was anticipating. On the first day of school, she changed her tune. I had to pry her off my leg at the door. When I picked her up two hours later, she seemed to have recovered and was full of stories about her morning. Painting is definitely one of her favorite activities. I love that her teachers label the paintings so I can say things like, "Wow, I really love this purple cloud you painted!" because at this point, the paintings all look rather similar. I think of this as her Jackson Pollock phase. 

Here's my little baby all ready for her first day of preschool.

Stay tuned for the second installment of "What we've been doing for the past two months."

The Family Circus

Before I had children, I had this idealistic view of what being a stay-at-home-mom would be like. I'd be like June Clever in blue jeans keeping my house neat and orderly while providing my children with fun and educational experiences. That image has been shattered by the reality of raising two kids. Just trying to empty the dishwasher can become a high drama. It usually goes something like this:

Me: Ok kids, I need to put the dishes away. Who wants to watch some educational television.

Riley: Meeeeeeeee

Colin: (does not respond because he is throwing large wooden blocks at the window)

Me: (exchanging blocks for a stuffed animals) Let's watch Elmo. This will just take a few minutes. 

Colin: Auuuuuuugggghhhh (yelling because he suddenly does not have Mommy's attention and following me into the kitchen.)

Me: Colin do not touch the dishwasher.

Riley: Mommy, I have to go potty.

Me: Ok, go potty. Colin do not touch the dishwasher.

Riley: Mommy, the bathroom door is closed. I can't get it open.

Me: (running to bathroom) I'll get it. (returning to kitchen) COLIN, GET YOUR HANDS OUT OF THE DISHWASHER!

Colin: Ha ha ha ha. (I take Colin by the hand and lead him back to the living room.)

Riley: (screaming) MOMMY!!!!!!!

Me: (running to bathroom) What's wrong?

Riley: Is there going to be a splash?

Me: What?

Riley: (very concerned) Is there going to be a big splash?

Me: Uh, no. Just a little thunk.

Riley: OK.

Me: (returning to kitchen to find Colin there) Colin, Hobbes does not like his tail pulled. No tail pulling.

Riley: (entering kitchen naked from the waist down) I'm all done. 

Me: Aren't you forgetting something?

Riley: Oh yea. I'll go wash my hands.

Me: Colin, leave Hobbes alone.

Riley: (returning) I washed my hands.

Me: Go put your pants and underwear on.

Hobbes: Mmmrrow! (translation- "Will someone please help me?")

Colin: Ha ha ha, kitten!

Me: COLIN, DO NOT SIT ON HOBBES!

Riley: (back again) I did it. (underwear is inside out, pants are on backwards)

Me: (removing Colin to the pack-and-play) Let's try this again. Remember, the big pockets go in back.

Riley: (throwing herself on the floor) I can't do it! Aaaauuugghhhh!

Colin: (pulling curtains off the wall from the pack-and-play) Aaauuugggghhhh!

Me: (giving up after putting away two plates and a fork) Aaaauuuuggghhhhh!

And now I will leave you with some cute pictures of the kids.

The Scarlet Letter

Well, it finally happened. I knew it was bound to occur sooner or later, and it finally did. I was in Buehler's pharmacy with both kids getting a prescription filled for Colin. Riley was standing beside me holding my hand and Colin was in the stroller. A woman in line behind me struck up a conversation by commenting on my daughter's lovely hair. 

"I can see she looks just like her mother," she said. 

I smiled and thanked her. Then she took a little peak around the stroller at Colin.

"Oh, your husband must have dark coloring," was her next remark.

"No," I said, "He has blond hair and blue eyes too." 

I think this woman dislocated her eyebrows they shot up so fast. She looked as if she was dying to ask more questions but thought better of it. Jeff believes I shouldn't take such wicked delight in someone's false assumptions about my virtue or lack thereof, but I found it rather humorous. Perhaps I should have informed her that the big "A" she was imagining on my chest really stood for adoption.