Using the Potty

Early in the morning,

Charlotte uses the potty.

This all started just after Charlotte turned one.  Charles was running the clean diapers up from the basement, I needed to use the bathroom, and we had a little potty out for a 19 month old friend who was visiting later on.  I thought, why not?  Like most people Charlotte often needs to use the facilities first thing in the morning, and now she usually does so in the potty.   

Charlotte's Birthday in Pictures

To the zoo and conservatory...the pond in the Sunken Garden is always a favorite spot.

 

Home for cake and ice cream (and presents of course).  You can tell by all the long legs there were lots of loving grownups about.

            

We skirted the dairy-free, wheat-free issue with coconut sorbet and banana bread cake made with almond flour,  enjoyed by all.  

Nova is Six!

Nova is Six!

Nova turned six on the 3rd of March.  As she put it, she got to turn six three times because we had relatives over the weekend before her birthday, went sledding and opened presents from mom, dad, brother and sister on her birthday, and had a sledding party with friends (the last sledding day of the season) the weekend after her birthday.  She thoroughly enjoyed it (though I must say--I think we will do our best to consolidate parties in the future--it was just a little too much excitement for Mom).

   

Nova is a wonderful six-year-old, full of new ideas and capabilities.  She is a maker, and often appears in at breakfast or bedtime in a costume of her own creation (super hero, warrior, puppy dog, etc).  To my delight, she now keeps her room clean with no prompting, having decided she likes it better that way.  After watching an old episode of Carl Sagen's Cosmos she decided to study Astronomy and has been diligently working all week.  We never know quite what to expect from Nova, she is full of unexpected, exuberant, brilliant, surprises.            

script from the day

I'm just going to lay this one out as it unfolded.  Sorry there are no pictures--grabbing the camera was not my top concern, but a striking image was at the center of this little vignette.

Scene One (A Spring day, late afternoon)

Nova: Can I play outside?
Me: Yes
(ten minutes later)
Nova:  (in tears)  Why can't you climb some trees?
Me: Some trees grow in a way that makes them hard to climb.  We can find other trees to climb, even if we can't climb the ones in the back yard.  And they are good for tree houses (we are planning to build a tree house next week).
Nova goes out to play in the yard again
I continue making dinner

Scene Two (fifteen minutes later)

I glance out the window.  Behind the black walnut tree (which all the tree house books have informed me have exceptionally brittle branches)  I see stacked precariously, our patio table, a dining room chair, the bathroom step stool, and Nova, reaching for the nearest limb.

Me: Come in here now!  (luckily Nova can't hear me and I get a minute to calm down, see the positives of the situation, and go about things in a more nuanced way).
I scoop up Charlotte and head out back.
Me: Nova, I'm impressed that you thought of a way to get in the tree but its really not a good one to climb.
Nova: Why not?
Me: Its branches break easily.
Nova: Mom, I never get to climb trees (tears)
(repeat the conversation from scene one regarding tree-climbing)
Me: Solomon and Nova, bring the chairs and things inside.
Solomon: (emerging from a book) I didn't help her do any of that.
I am thunderstruck--the table seats four and is made of cast iron, and Nova is only a head taller than the dining room chair.


Well--I'm not a playwrite, but you get the idea.  Man that kid is strong, quick, determined, and totally unconcerned with safety (or asking permission).  No broken bones, life continues.