Wednesday 8-8-07 (pm) It was so cute - when I got to daycare today M and Howie were sitting in the driveway with a lemonade stand. I brought them a quarter and bought a glass of red koolaid that they both had bright red mustaches from. I got L from downstairs and I brought my drink home to show/share with Daddy. M waited until Dad got home and then proceeded to drink our glass of koolaid while telling us all about selling to Howie's neighbors and getting "moneys". After the girls went to bed I finally made the strawberry rhubarb pie that I have been wanting to do since Sunday. It wasn't going to be done in the oven until after 11pm so I went to bed and had T take it out before he went to bed. It smelled wonderful when L woke us up at 4am. I don't know what woke her but after T couldn't get her back to sleep I ended up just feeding her just enough to get her calmed down and back asleep.

Thursday 8-9-07 Tonight I tried guilting Jen into coming down this weekend and it didn't work. So when I'm crabby I clean. I starting going through this whole stack of papers - mail, receipts, etc and started organizing. Thankfully my husband calmed me down by serving me rhubarb pie and ice cream. Now that tastes like summer!

Friday 8-10-07 What a great start to the weekend. T & I both got off work at noon today (or shortly thereafter) and went home and changed and packed the diaper bag before picking up the girls. Then we went to the Sioux Empire Fair. We really didn't know what to expect from the girls so just had a whatever happens, happens attitude. We started out on the north side of the fair for a change and looked at the model train display first. It was very nice to take our time and not have to rush through it with 50 people waiting behind you. Then as it was starting to rain we went through the kids safety tent to keep dry and then as it was still raining we went through the 4-H exhibits building. In the last couple years, I never really got a chance to look in here but T pushed M around in the stroller and I had L sleeping in then Snugli. I had an umbrella and M was protected in the stroller with her raincoat wrapped around her legs on the way to the petting zoo. M had fun in there and even got her hand painted (instead of on her face). By then it had pretty much stopped raining, so we got some lunch - I had a corn dog (hadn't had one in 3 yrs) and T the same chicken strips and fries he has had the last 3 yrs. Next we thought we would try looking through the Expo building and if M got bored we would leave, but she did really good. I don't know if it was she could see things with LOTS fewer people as it was the middle of the afternoon vs. evening when we normally go or what, but we were amazed. L was awake and squaking, not crying just making really loud noises so I tried giving her the pacifier but every time someone would talk to her she would smile so big the pacifier would fall out plus her legs would kick and her arms would wave. She loves attention. Then the most amazing thing happened, M fell asleep in the stroller and L in the Snugli and T & I looked through the Open Class exhibit building and then enjoyed ice cream together. L was awake for the ice cream but just sat in Dad's arms and enjoyed sole attention from him. M slept over an hour before we thought we better wake her up and see if she wanted to go on any rides. She went by herself on 3 little rides and had a big grin on her face. We completed our fair trip with a messy funnel cake, good thing we waited until the end as we were all covered in powdered sugar. Just a perfect afternoon considering we were there for 5 hours. As we were leaving the fair we had a wonderful surprise, Jen called and said she had lied to me and had changed her mind and was going to come down to visit this weekend. So we got both girls to bed and the house picked up before she arrived around 11pm. We hadn't seen each other since May so there was a lot of catching up to do until crazy hours in the morning.

Monday 8-6-07 M ate her breakfast and her lunch "ALL GONE" at daycare today! That is wonderful and we make a big deal of it when we pick her up hoping she will repeat this for the rest of the week. Supper on the other hand was a different story. We tried to get her to take one bite of pork loin and one bite of potato but she wouldn't have anything to do with it. So she had grapes and a piece of bread. That and I made a juice with lemonade and watermelon that she drank (without knowing there was watermelon in it). I may try that again. We spent the rest of the evening playing on the floor with the girls singing all sorts of nursery rhymes and kids songs. Very relaxing!

Tuesday 8-7-07 It was the busiest day of month end for me at work today, so T brought me lunch and we ate in my office. Nothing fancy - Subway - but it is nice to talk in person uninterrupted. After work we quick had PB sandwiches so T could bring M to see the Hall boys at Tikwando and Nancy came over to our house to spend time with L and myself. Nancy and I had a nice visit and L was doing pretty well until about 8pm when I think she realized this wasn't right - someone was missing and she wasn't getting held by Mom or Dad. When Nancy left I carried L around the house, Up and down the stairs, so I could talk on the phone to Jen without L crying. Lately it has been hard to schedule phone calls between the girls, me falling asleep on the couch and just plain too busy. Not that I want to wish summer away but I hope this fall or winter we can find 20 minutes to talk on the phone. Or better yet see her in person, which has been since her wedding and that was almost 3 months ago. The same goes for everyone else - I just feel like we get such short time with the girls in the evening that I shouldn't spend it on the phone every night so I don't call anyone until they go to bed and some nights my brain is asleep by then. Anyway T and M were home shortly and got M ready for bed and as she all her meals today she got two books instead of one. She thinks she is outsmarting me by having me read the two books and then she reads the same two books to me. I know what she is doing, but I'm so impressed that she can repeat the whole book back to me that I let her do it. Granted this is the third night in a row she has picked that book, but still I'm impressed. I hope she gets her memory from her Dad and not me. L was ready to eat and got to bed at 9:30pm. If she isn't already up she wakes up at 6:30am and ready for bed at 9:30 - I love her schedule!

Wednesday 8-8-07 Well - as you are probably noticing I am a week and a half behind and I am tired enough this morning to just give up writing, but I'm hoping I'm just stubborn enough to keep going. This morning both girls did well. L laid in her crib facing down scraping the sheet with her finger nails when I came to get her this morning. She must be tired also as I changed her diaper and she keep her eyes shut. When I finished feeding her she had a smile for Dad. L and I woke up M and she wanted to be carried in to our bed to watch Curious George (her newest cartoon obsession). She wanted Mom to get her dressed this morning and was excited she beat L. We got everyone in the cars driving out the driveway when we realized we were going to switch cars so T could get my oil changed. So I followed them to daycare and took his car and he took mine. Both girls were doing well when we left.

Saturday 7-28-07 Lazy Saturday! We haven't stayed home and had a lazy day in a long time. Everyone slept in until at least 7am when L and I got up and had about an hour to ourselves before the others got up. We had banana muffins for breakfast and then M dressed up in her Cinderella dress, 6 strands of beads around her neck and a bracelet. She went into our closet and picked out a shirt with fish on it for Dad's party dress and as I was in a nightgown - that worked. We played in our party dresses all morning. Then after lunch M laid down for a nap and I did too (Dad offered to watch the girls). I told him to wake up in a 1/2 hour and 1 1/2 hours later all three woke me up. We all got ready and went grocery shopping. we were doing pretty well - M was driving the "car kart" and L was in her carseat in the stroller going up and down the aisles UNTIL M got tired of driving and wanted to walk around and L started crying and when I picked her up she had pooped through her outfit and into the carseat and on my shirt. Plus the diaperbag was in the car so T grabbed M and they ran to the car while I held L to keep her quiet. Then I changed her and cleaned the carseat the best I could and put her back in where she fussed the whole way home. That is the last time all four of us go grocery shopping in a while. Our friend Megan and her daughter Clara came over for supper and it was so nice we ate out ont he deck and the girls played on the swingset. After they left we put M to bed and played with L a little while before the rest of us went to sleep.

Sunday 7-29-07 We went to church this morning and both girls did very well. I made homemade donuts for breakfast that M loved. Then after Mom's 1/2 hour nap we got ready to go down to Beresford. We went to see Great G&G Z and Aunt Darlene. Grandpa found a cookie for M and money to put in her and L's piggy banks when they got home. Grandma's face light up when she got to hold L and especially when M gave her a big hug and a kiss. We were there close to an hour and a half and that was about the time to leave before a really good visit was ruined by cooped up girls. So we went back to SF and went to Valentinos for supper. M ate her pizza and L was doing good as long as she could sit in my lap and not in the carseat. A very nice relaxing day.

Monday 7-30-07 T asked the creative director at Paulsen to make L a wood cutout of a frog like M's horse. He brought it home today - it is so cute. Well L's frog had jewels on it, so T told M that she could send her horse to get jewels if she wanted. When she was supposed to be sleeping T heard her talking - she was telling her horse (hanging on the wall) that he was going to go tomorrow to get "pretty". She was so excited.

Tuesday 7-31-07 danelle says: how did drop off go? Geek Dad says: terrible Geek Dad says: she screamed and cried all the way there - and into the house - so i put her in time out as soon as we walked in - and she cried more - Geek Dad says: plus kelly was gone this morning - it was just the helper danelle says: I'm sorry Geek Dad says: not your fault Geek Dad says: she wanted more juice - drank it all in the garage - i told her no

Fortunately she did well the rest of the day - she had 3 helpings of french toast and grapes (it wasn't home made of course). Then she ate her lunch all gone! So she was very excited to hear that Daddy was taking her and L to BK to meet Michael and Serie for supper and then they were going to the park to play. Because we have such nice husbands, Nancy and I went out to eat without any kids and went shopping at the craft store and could look at breakable items. It was only a couple hours and as soon as I got in the car L was screaming as she was hungry and as soon as we got home it was time to get M ready for bed - but it was really nice to have those couple hours. It is difficult most days to find time to be non-Raven/Aerostar, non-Mommy, non-wife Danelle.

Wednesday 8-1-07 This morning something happened that hasn't happened in a long time (on a week day)- M woke up on her own. She turned our bedroom light on and then just sat in the doorway until we coaxed her on the bed with the three of us (I was feeding L and we were all dressed and ready to just wake her up). She would have been perfectly happy to just stay there in bed and watch Curious George but Dad managed to get her dressed without complaints. We made it out the door and everyone to work on time. By the time I picked them up L had pooped through her outfit and M refused to eat one kernel of corn and lifted the cheese off each bite of pizza making sure there wasn't any meat on it. It was nice out and M wanted to play in the backyard. I thought I would be nice and make snacks of fruit on pretzel sticks for her but she only ate one bite of apple and pretzel and then refused to eat the watermelon. For supper we tried to get her to eat one little bite of sandwhich with a tiny bit of ham on it and she refused - so she went to bed shortly after 7pm. T & I both get so upset that she would rather go to bed 1 1/2 hours before bedtime than try one bite. So I took L for a walk in the stroller and got some parenting therapy from my folks on the cell phone. We got back just before it started pouring rain (too bad it didn't last any longer than 10 min). So we got everything packed and laid out for tomorrow and went to bed right after the news.

Thursday 8-2-07 This morning was the best drop off since L was born for me (I haven't done it many times but they have all been bad). M didn't get any snacks or drinks on the way and she wanted to wear her flip-flops instead of her sandals. Other than that she helped tell me how to get to Kelly's (pretending I didn't know the way) and she went down the list of everything we have to bring - M, L, blanket, milk, Mommy, purse, lunch, pump and today a bag of clothes to change into for the Paulsen picnic. I had an appt. early this morning so I had a few extra minutes to give them both extra hugs and kisses before I left daycare. So I'm keeping my fingers crossed that L doesn't poop through her clothes (again) and M keeps her promise of at least trying her breakfast and lunch so that we can go to the picnic. But after yesterday I have my doubts.

Well the both proved me wrong - L and M did great today. Both girls ate today and still looked nice in the clothes I sent them in this morning. So we met up with Dad and I quick fed L before off to the picnic and Thunder Road. We had a lot of fun visiting, good food (M ate a hotdog warmed on the grill) and activities. T and I each took a turn riding with M in the go-karts. We couldn't tell if she was having more fun "driving" or talking smack to T's co-workers about who was going to win. We watched Dad in the batting cage before he and M did the Water Wars. M wanted to do water balloons in the worst way but then she kept hiding behind Dad or the sign so she stayed dry while Dad got wet. L did really well - she was content to be passed around and watch everything going on. By 9pm it was definitely time to go home and get everyone ready for bed.

Monday - Week 7 I need a vacation from my vacation. I am really tired still today, not as bad as yesterday but it is still pretty early. L finally fell asleep last night watching/listening to the mobile in the crib and slept until 5am when Dad gave her the pacifier and she slept until 6:30am. I picked her up to change, dress and feed her - she was all smiles. M fell asleep around 9pm and slept until I went in to give her a hug and a kiss before going to work at 7:10am. She first asked if I had given L a kiss and then it must have registered that I said I was leaving because she wanted me to carry her downstairs, get her dressed and then didn't want me to leave. So on the morning where her and Dad are to get extra time together she was clinging to me. I did make it out the door and Dad said that she did good - "we were in the laundry room when she said " Oh! i forgot to wake my pigs" she ran upstairs and came back down with the two pigs and had to take them to Kellys". We tried to show M tough love and when she wouldn't take a bite of supper other than yogurt we told her she had to go to bed @ 7:30pm. She was NOT happy about it but would rather go to bed than eat one bite of pork roast. T & I got some quiet time with L by herself for a change.

After the girls went to bed I made banana bread and muffins - T stayed up to take it out of the oven.

Tuesday Geek Dad (T) says: when i was dropping off maggie Geek Dad says: i said good bye and closed the gate Geek Dad says: and then she said "oh daddy - i have to ask you somtin" Geek Dad says: and came running over and then whispered/asked "after kellys, can mommy do my fingernails?" Geek Dad says: i told her mommy would paint her fingernails

Well that was the plan until M refused to eat a bite of supper again. I even tried celery with peanut butter and raisens, she picked out the "M&Ms" and licked the PB and refused the rest. She even offered to take a bite of carrot instead but once it was in her hands she couldn't make herself do it. So bedtime tonight was 7pm. She is one stubborn girl.

Wednesday Geek Dad says: morning danelle says: morning danelle says: how did drop off go today? Geek Dad says: pretty good - i dont know if she is tired or not feeling well but she was really sluggsih Geek Dad says: and when i picked her up to kiss her she told me she was sweating and my face was cold danelle says: I hope she is not dehidrated Geek Dad says: didnt think of that Geek Dad says: i think we need to think of soemthing for her to actually eat tonight danelle says: well if she is not eating danelle says: did you tell Kelly she didn't eat again? Geek Dad says: yeah - she was shocked danelle says: that she didn't eat or that she went to bed at 7pm Geek Dad says: both Geek Dad says: "she didnt eat again? Maggiiieeee danelle says: dentist tomorrow Geek Dad says: right Geek Dad says: im sick danelle says: no you aren't Geek Dad says: damn Geek Dad says: meeting? danelle says: sorry Geek Dad says: no i mean i think i may have a meeting tomrrow danelle says: oh - no I checked your calendar Geek Dad says: damn Geek Dad says: um Geek Dad says: i thnk maggie is sick - i better stay home with her danelle says: now don't wish that Geek Dad says: heh Geek Dad says: your not going to believe this danelle says: ?? Geek Dad says: kelly just called Geek Dad says: maggie threw up danelle says: oh no

This is how T & I communicate - e-mails back and forth. So he left work and picked her up from daycare and left L there to avoid her getting sick. When they got home T gave her Pedilyte and she didn't have any problems with that. By lunch she had kept down a piece of toast and a few crackers so T gave her a PB sandwhich. We're not sure if she was really sick or just dehidrated or sour milk or her just playing us. Whatever it was she and Dad got some quailty time together, she took an hour and a half nap and they cleaned the very messy playroom. L did fine at daycare until right before I picked her up and she had a really yucky diaper but she was fine the rest of the evening - thank goodness. Daddy and M made yummy waffles for supper.

Thursday T & I had dentist appts at 8am, so we had a few extra minutes to get ready this morning which was nice. Both girls were doing well and drop off went fine. T tried to convince the dentist to tell me I had a cavity (even though I don't). Then off to work. We have been staying home this week and actually got laundry, cleaning, etc done. Not exciting or fun but definately needed. This week's problem was the dryer - some piece for the heat stopped working. So we had to call the repair man, but it is fixed.

Friday This morning T thought he should go into work early, that was fine I could take the girls to daycare for a change. Well that sounded simple enough, except M didn't want the little cup of juice Dad poured before he left, she wanted milk. But not that much milk (she wanted more - but if she gets more she doesn't eat breakfast at daycare), plus her and Daddy play some game that if she drinks it all before he pulls into the driveway at daycare she wins. Well she was so upset she wasn't drinking and so I drove down the street and back and she still wasn't done. so when I pulled in the driveway she got even more upset and started screaming for Daddy. If I was a smart and calm mother I wouldn't let it get to me, but I go crazy and told Kelly that I'm going to invent a tube that shoots the kids to daycare and home like they have at the bank driveup. So to calm down I stopped for gas and breakfast and got to work 1/2 hour late. Work today flew by - the accounting department was invited to tour Raven's Precision Center and ride in tractors, sprayers, etc to see Flow Control's equipment work. It was very interesting, plus I got to meet several people that I talk to on the phone and had to face to put with the name. Then I left around 12:30pm. I met T to do something we have talked about for a long time - we picked out and purchased a new mattress for ourselves. We have had used matresses for 7 years now and thought it was time to treat ourselves. Then we had a nice lunch together before picking up the girls at daycare. It was pretty hot out so we went shopping at Home Depot and Lowes looking for a ceiling fan for our bedroom. The girls were doing really well, but two stores was the limit. So we went to the park and played for awhile before going home for supper. It was very nice to not have a schedule or an agenda of anything that had to be done.

Monday - Week 6 We needed a day to recouperate - so we stayed home, did some laundry and put the girls to bed early tonight.

Tuesday - Week 6 This morning L woke up at 4am and I was so tired and asleep that I just laid her in bed with us and she fell asleep right away. Then when I woke her up to feed her at 6:30am she was more interested in smiling at me than eating, so hopefully she won't be starving as soon as she gets to daycare. I laid L down in M's bed to wake her up and she turned and gave L a kiss and then after haggling over the outfit got dressed and hair combed no problems. As I was giving M a kiss in the car she asked if I packed a sandwich and apple for lunch and a snack "just in case". She is so cute and smart and a woman after my own heart.

Tom came to meet me for lunch today - it was a nice change of pace from eating/pumping at my desk every day. I was busy in the afternoon and then time to go get the girls. Barb volunteered to come babysit again tonight, so she arrived shortly after we walked in the door. M was excited to tell Barb all about her day and what they were going to eat for supper and see if she would play "the candy game" with her. So I fed L and T & I were out the door without having to use jumper cables to start the car this time. We had a nice supper and even did a little shopping. I love the girls to pieces but T & I do need time to remember how to be a couple once in a while. Hopefully we can store this up and have it work until the next time we get a sitter :-) Once we got home, T put M to bed and I fed L and got her to bed before I fell asleep in the chair and T put me to bed.

Wednesday - Week 6 L had her 4 month Dr. appt this afternoon. Dad went to pick her up from daycare - hoping to sneak her out and come back to get M after the appt, but she saw him and so she came with. She was really good - other than needing to find the bathroom as soon as we got there and asking for her snack (that we promised her if she was a good girl) every 2 minutes she was really good. L did great! She is 27" long (100th percentile) and 15 lbs (80th). They gave her 3 shots in the leg and an oral vaccine. She didn't even cry for the first two shots and after we put her in the carseat and she was done crying. Once we got home G John played with her while Austin and M played. We ordered pizza for supper and gave the girls baths before T & A went to see the movie "Transformers". L fussed a little after the bath, not sure if it was her legs or just hungry. Dad went home and Mom and A stayed at our house. **First night for L in the crib not the cradle**

Thursday - Week 6 Mom was taking both M & A today so we only had to get three of us out the door in the morning, for some reason that seems a lot easier. I didn't ask T but it was very strange for me to only pick up one girl from daycare. We met Mom and the kids for lunch @ Culvers, unfortunately some of the fun was overshadowed by M not wanting the hotdog we ordered her and wanting A's chicken strips but after one bite not wanting that either - and the girl doesn't like french fries and said she didn't want her ice cream either if it meant eating her hotdog. It was still nice to see them, but I could live without the drama all the time.

After work we packed up L and went down to G&G Z's for supper. It was fantastic - bacon wrapped burgers and sweet corn. We said our good-byes to Austin (as his flight was supposed to leave at 7am Friday morning) and took the girls home to bed.

Friday - Week 6 L was not herself after getting shots and woke up a few times during the night - I sleptwalked into her room to give her the pacifier and then back to bed. I got up and pumped and made sure T got up and ready for work. When he left he convinced me to go back to sleep as the girls were still sleeping (it didn't take much to convince me). I heard the garage door and laid down in bed - until he came running back up the stairs saying Austin's flight got cancelled and could I watch him as Mom had to go to work. So from dead asleep to in the shower and dressed in 15 minutes before they got there. L woke up then so the three of us hung out, watched some cartoons, and made coffee cake before M finally woke up at 9:30am. She must have been really tired, but very excited that Austin was back to play again today. Poor M was still tired and she and Austin needed some adult supervision to stay on an even keel this morning so we all went outside and played on the swingset - all four of us taking turns swinging and pushing. We piled in the car and met T and Grandma for lunch - in order to avoid fights and get M to eat we picked BK. Then after lunch L and I went and got everyone's swimsuits (she slept on the way home and back) and met T and the kids at the park. We went swimming at Terrace Park for almost 4 hours but everyone was having so much fun. T & A did the waterslides together and the girls and I hung out in the zero degree entry pool the whole time. L did great - didn't mind getting splashed. M was getting tired towards the end and was content to just stand on the sidewalk and watch Dad and Austin come off the waterslides. G Val showed up after work and got to see the kids play. Then we headed back to our house to shower before going out for pizza. Austin has a hollow leg - that boy can eat and he stays so skinny. We said our good-byes for the second time as his flight was now to leave Sat at 8:30am.

The girls were good last night. They ate their supper and played really well. Grandpa even put up the ultimate fort - they put up the tent in the yard. M and Austin had a lot of fun again this morning playing in that - so busy Austin didn't want to take time to eat breakfast. M on the other hand polished off her cinnamon roll, part of Dad's and part of mine. We lazed around in the morning and let the kids play and L roll on the floor. Then we got all three kids in the car and went back to SF to have lunch with T's friend from high school. We had a nice visit and the kids took turns playing in the toy room and back yard. It was warm out so we got out the squirt guns and filled the little baby pool and wet down the slide with a bucket of water. They say a picture is worth a thousand words - well in this case I'm not sure if the pictures captured all the squealing and giggling, chasing and running going on. Later in the afternoon we took them to the swimming pool. This was the first time for M in the big pool (except for hotel pools). She was excited to go with Dad and Austin while I took L to the wading pool. There were so many kids she was intimidated and it wasn't long before she came to join L and me. T & Austin showed off jumping off the diving boards and M clapped for them. Us girls just enjoyed the cool water and M took turns going down the slide and going under the spray of water from the frog. At five we decided to go and get cleaned up and have supper (after one more round of squirt guns in the back yard). We watched a movie and had pizza before driving back down to Beresford. The plan was to shoot some fireworks which we did, but it wasn't as enjoyable as we were hoping. M fell asleep in the car so hard she wet her pants, L decided it was time to eat right as we were cleaning up M and Austin was getting tired of waiting for us. We did a few and then put the kids to bed - M and A on the waterbed, L in the playpen. By then T & I were ready for a drink and a dip in the hot tub. I was hoping to be in bed early, but we were enjoying actually talking to each other and seeing the stars that before we knew it Mom and Dad, Mark and Shirley were back from the play so we talked to them some before finally going to bed.

We coaxed M out of bed by reminding her she got to see Austin after daycare today. Dad dropped off the girls and I made it to work on time today. I had to work the whole day today so at noon T picked up the girls and met me at the Falls for a picnic lunch. It was perfect weather and M and Dad walked around looking at the water and rocks when we finished eating. They stopped by my office so I could show off the girls. M hid in my office finding all my toys - everything from a stress ball to dental floss. After trying to wrap that all over the office it was time for them to take a drive so the girls could nap.

Unfortunately M had a fit in the car because she wanted to give me a hug (even though I went out to the car with them and gave her a hug) so the nap was pretty short by the time they picked up Austin. They went to the house to play and T pack before I got home.

When I got home we got everyone in the car and drove to Mom and Dads. Any arguements M and Austin had at the house over what toys to bring and who got to carry them were forgotten. Right away they started riding bike/trike, basketball, etc. I fed L and T set out PJs etc for the girls. M was too busy to notice we were leaving and L was great in Grandpa's arms - so off we drove to Sioux City to see Amy and Paul in Greese at the Community Theater. It was strange - the car was quiet and we could talk without pausing to find sunglasses, pacifier, or toys on the floor. It was nice! We talked to Toots, Dale, shelly and Renee at the play. Then after a great performance we took Amy & Paul out for supper (at 11pm). We made it back to Mom and Dad's around 1am and went to sleep in seconds.

With only one car T & I got up 15 min. early, got the girls ready and took them to daycare. Then I dropped him off at work and drove myself to work. I was still 15 min. late - go figure. Not a big deal and hopefully the car will be fixed by tonight.

Well they fixed the Bravada this afternoon and T got a ride from a co-worker to the shop to pick it up, meanwhile I went to pick up the girls from daycare. We played outside on the swingset and put the baby swing up for L for the first time. I think she liked it, she didn't really smile but almost fell asleep so she couldn't have been too nervous. After supper we thought we were getting M to bed early and the whole time I was doing dishes and cleaning the kitchen I did not hear a peep out of her but at 9:30pm she called out asking if I would put a headband in her hair. I don't know if she was awake that whole time or not, but I would guess so. I think she was awake until 10pm, so much for putting her to bed early.

For the third day in a row M got up and dressed without too much trouble and L was in all smiles, it is very nice. T doesn't really have to wake up and I get to work on time. The day was going pretty well until T went home for lunch and the car started acting funny and then wouldn't start. So he biked all the way across town to work. For the record I did offer to come get him. He made it in a half hour - I don't think I would have made it. He made it home a couple minutes faster. Our wonderful friend Barb volunteered to come watch the kids so we could go on a date tonight. Our "hot date" consisted of jumping the battery in the Bravada three times to make it across town to the mechanic. We did have a nice supper - adult conversation not about work or bills or diapers. When we got done eating we realized it was time to get the girls to bed so we drove home, thanked Barb and put our girls to sleep. All in all it was a good evening but we could have lived without the car trouble.

As we ran out of pull-ups for M, she was happy to report this morning that she stayed dry all night long! She has done this many nights before but she is always so proud. Dad and I are too! She and Dad went downstairs to get her dressed on the couch while I fed L and then we all raced out the door. Today was the first day L slept in a playpen for a nap at daycare away from the other kids and she did great, slept for an hour. They only tried it as she didn't sleep at all until 2pm when they finally tried laying down. No matter the motivation - she did great. M announced "I told you I don't like noodles" and only ate her two chicken nuggets and wouldn't eat homemade french toast for breakfast. Other than that she was fine and in a much better mood when I picked her up than yesterday. So we went to the library on the way home. She enjoyed picking out movies and books - even let Dad and I each read a book to her there. It was nice and much cooler out - so after supper we played outside. Threw the toy around for Wrigley, drew with sidewalk chalk, etc until bath time. Both girls had fun splashing in their seperate baths before bed. I know L is probably big enough to sit in the big tub with big sister - so we'll have to dig out the chair and try it next time. After they were asleep I had had it and fell asleep in the chair before going to bed myself.