Tummies & Tantrums

We've been dealing a lot with this blog's title subjects lately. And, as you can imagine, not in a good way.

For fear of spreading more of the evil, I'm going to say little about the tummy woes we endured. Suffice it to say that Iris had a tummy bug that took her nearly 5 full days from which to recover. Nick and Felix each had their own bouts. I, miraculously, escaped (cue me getting it any second now).

Boy howdy, whoever introduced Iris to tantrums, I'd like a word with you. They may have started before, but they sure gained steam after Iris was sick. On her first day back to a normal routine after the tummy bug, she had 3 epic tantrums lasting a total of 1.5 hours. All based on some minor thing (I told her it was time to get ready for daycare / I wouldn't let her go down the slide one more time / it was time for bed). Last week, I dealt with getting her rigid, screaming little body into her car seat - all because I gave her a mint that SHE DIDN'T TAKE OUT OF THE PACKET HERSELF (note: she threw the tantrum instead of asking me if she could do it). I'm a terrible parent. There, I said it. It's moments like these that make me repeat my parenting mantra: it's just a phase... it's just a phase...

Nick's grandpa on his mom's side passed away last week. Nick and I went up to the funeral today. Nick gave a killer eulogy (figuratively speaking).

There. Bad over. And now, on to the good! We signed Felix up for rec soccer, which he'll play in May (he's on the Beetles). He's excited to give it a try. Look at that game face! This is the summer we'll have him try soccer and T-ball, then see what he'd like to keep playing next year. Felix also lost his first tooth! It happened when the kids were left with a sitter, so we couldn't make a big deal about it. :o( But he was very proud. He had a shark tooth for over a month, so the tooth was loose for a while. And it's not too jarring now, because the big tooth has already grown in so far. He also had his first school program. His classes sang three songs about farm life. He looked so nervous!

First lost tooth

Felix is 2nd row on the right

More good: I've been thinking about donating my hair to create wigs for women with cancer for a while. It got to the point where my hair was finally long enough and I desperately needed a haircut, so I made the cut last week. I chose to send my locks to the Pantene Beautiful Lengths program. Win-win! I'm getting used to the new look, but it was amusing to get double-takes and compliments my first day back in the office. Although I'm being asked for my ID again to buy liquor... Yay?

Felix: 5.5 yrs & Iris: 2.5 yrs

Springing Up

Spring has finally decided to make an appearance recently. We've emerged from our hibernation and rediscovered the outdoors thanks to some lovely weather. And, when we've been inside, we've been very happy Badger fans.

So proud!

First off, Felix! He's got a shark tooth that hasn't dislodged the baby tooth in front. For the squeamish, I'll withhold a photo, but it does look rather funny. I took the week off to stay home with him over spring break. He's been a good sport, enduring a shopping trip to Madison with minimal irritation. Yesterday, he decided he wanted the training wheels off his bike. I ran behind him for about 20 feet before letting go... and he was gone! He has to learn his limitations, though; he tried to do too much and ended up falling off his bike twice and scraping up his elbows.

Iris is showing her tomboy colors. I didn't think she'd really get much use out of the playset while she was so little, but she has proven me wrong (which you can see in the video below). She's such a silly chatterbox most of the time. She likes to "hide in the vegetable patch" (sit among the grocery bags when we leave the store). She had a playdate with her daycare buddy a couple weekends ago. So much high-pitched chatter! Oh, it's nearly impossible to get a non-blurry picture of Iris.



We hope you have a Happy Easter! Go Badgers!

Felix: 5.5 yrs & Iris: 2.5 yrs