I'm in an unfortunate situation. When I hear something from Mrs. Lime or if I screw up and she tells me what I screwed up, Kali 3.8 serves as a voice recorder for what's being said. As a result, if I end up making the same mistake or doing the same thing at another time, my daughter is there to reprimand me.
Rolling stops at a stop sign are a prime example. She learned that we're supposed to come to a COMPLETE stop. So if I roll the stop sign in the SLIGHTEST, I hear 'Daddy, you didn't stop! I saw a stop sign and you didn't stop!'.
If I do something in the kitchen and Mrs. Lime doesn't do it the same way I do, Kali is there to ensure that I am told exactly how Mommy says to do it.
I have a feeling this will get worse rather than better since Kali is showing signs of great intelligence. As we all know, the kid always knows more than the adult.
Friday, September 24, 2010
Sunday, September 19, 2010
Wisdom from a three year-old.......
"Daddy, babies drop their bottles on the floor all the time. That's why you should never have a baby."
Thursday, September 16, 2010
Heaven
Kali 3.7 and I had a discussion last night about her Great-Grandma's passing. She doesn't really understand death yet, but it was worth a try.
Me: We're going to Great Grandma's funeral tomorrow. She died.
Kali: Where is she now?
Me: She's in heaven.
Kali: Where's heaven?
Me: It's in the clouds.
Kali: She's up in the clouds?
Me: Yep, she's up there with Great Grandpa.
Kali: Did he die too?
Me: Yes, there up in the clouds together.
Kali: Are they with Baby Jesus?
Me: Yes.
Kali: Is Jesus with his mommy and daddy?
Me: Yes.
Kali: We should get on an airplane and go up to visit them.
Me: Not a bad idea. Do you want to visit the clouds?
Kali: No, I want to stay in my bed.
Me: OK, you can stay in your bed. We'll visit there another time.
Me: We're going to Great Grandma's funeral tomorrow. She died.
Kali: Where is she now?
Me: She's in heaven.
Kali: Where's heaven?
Me: It's in the clouds.
Kali: She's up in the clouds?
Me: Yep, she's up there with Great Grandpa.
Kali: Did he die too?
Me: Yes, there up in the clouds together.
Kali: Are they with Baby Jesus?
Me: Yes.
Kali: Is Jesus with his mommy and daddy?
Me: Yes.
Kali: We should get on an airplane and go up to visit them.
Me: Not a bad idea. Do you want to visit the clouds?
Kali: No, I want to stay in my bed.
Me: OK, you can stay in your bed. We'll visit there another time.
Lessons
My grandmother passed away this week. She was 97 years old, so it was certainly a life that was long and lived to its fullest.
My grandfather passed away several years ago. He was a strong-willed guy and always wanted to portray himself as a figurehead of the family. While he generally succeeded in that regard, I learned a very valuable lesson after he died.
Most of the grand kids always thought that Grandma was quiet and generally played the role of subservient wife. As I quickly noticed after my grandfather's passing, it could not be further from the truth. My grandmother was the leader of the family. She was very strong and ran the family. Her personality also came out quite a bit more after my grandfather's passing. We were able to see a different side of her we had not seen before.
The lesson I took from that revelation is that you can be a good role model and the leader of your family without being the loudest or strongest personality in the family. There is such a thing as a quiet, yet powerful family role model. I'm not sure that I'm the leader of our family, but I do know that I learned a valuable lesson from my grandmother as to how to be an effective role model.
My grandfather passed away several years ago. He was a strong-willed guy and always wanted to portray himself as a figurehead of the family. While he generally succeeded in that regard, I learned a very valuable lesson after he died.
Most of the grand kids always thought that Grandma was quiet and generally played the role of subservient wife. As I quickly noticed after my grandfather's passing, it could not be further from the truth. My grandmother was the leader of the family. She was very strong and ran the family. Her personality also came out quite a bit more after my grandfather's passing. We were able to see a different side of her we had not seen before.
The lesson I took from that revelation is that you can be a good role model and the leader of your family without being the loudest or strongest personality in the family. There is such a thing as a quiet, yet powerful family role model. I'm not sure that I'm the leader of our family, but I do know that I learned a valuable lesson from my grandmother as to how to be an effective role model.
Wednesday, September 08, 2010
Two toother
Giselle 0.9 just had her second tooth pop in. Pretty cute smile. She has the bottom two middle teeth now, though one is longer than the other. She's also working quite a bit on chewing puffed rice snacks. We can't give her enough. I think she loves the option of feeding herself. She tries to do it by grabbing on to the spoon, but doesn't do well with that just yet. She's also becoming a better crawler. She's going with the belly crawl right now and is very good at it.
Kali 3.6 had her first day of preschool yesterday. She didn't say much other than to say that she ate lunch with Eric. Three years old and she's already eating lunch with boys. I'm screwed. She has her second day of lunch tomorrow. Hopefully she'll move over to the girls table to save her father some anxiety.
Kali 3.6 had her first day of preschool yesterday. She didn't say much other than to say that she ate lunch with Eric. Three years old and she's already eating lunch with boys. I'm screwed. She has her second day of lunch tomorrow. Hopefully she'll move over to the girls table to save her father some anxiety.
Friday, August 27, 2010
Cats and dogs living together in harmony..........
We've got a toddler walking and dogs and cats getting along in our household. Strange days indeed.
Thursday, August 26, 2010
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
New cat in town.......
We've got a new cat. His name is Sunny. He's a one year old orange tabby cat. He's got a couple bad habits that we'll have to break him of, but overall, he's a very loving and affectionate cat.
Kali 3.6 learned the hard way that kitties (she was the one that wanted a cat) do have claws. She was goofing around and wasn't nice to the kitty. He stuck her in the leg. She came to Daddy saying "I don't want a cat anymore!" Grandma and Grandpa were even on Skype at the time to watch it all unfold.
As Kali has learned since then, cats are much different than dogs. They have different needs and you have to handle them differently than you would a dog. She has done a much better job of late being nice to the kitty. They're now good buddies.
Tinkerbell 1.10 has also learned about how to treat a cat. She promptly received a couple of swats on the snout with her first advances. But she's learned to give the kitty some space and they actually will sit within a couple of feet of each other. They're both doing very well under the circumstances.
Kali 3.6 learned the hard way that kitties (she was the one that wanted a cat) do have claws. She was goofing around and wasn't nice to the kitty. He stuck her in the leg. She came to Daddy saying "I don't want a cat anymore!" Grandma and Grandpa were even on Skype at the time to watch it all unfold.
As Kali has learned since then, cats are much different than dogs. They have different needs and you have to handle them differently than you would a dog. She has done a much better job of late being nice to the kitty. They're now good buddies.
Tinkerbell 1.10 has also learned about how to treat a cat. She promptly received a couple of swats on the snout with her first advances. But she's learned to give the kitty some space and they actually will sit within a couple of feet of each other. They're both doing very well under the circumstances.
Thursday, August 19, 2010
Uh oh...........
I went with Kali 3.6 tonight on what was a simple task........purchase a backpack. We went over to Wal-Mart and were directed to the backpack section. Kali spotted a Disney Princess backpack and our search ended right there.
We went up to the cashier stand and bought the backpack. The cashier was a nice lady who asked Kali whether she was going to preschool or kindergarten. Kali said preschool and the cashier said her daughter was going to 3rd grade. Then it hit me.......Kali is going to preschool. It always silly when another parent gets emotional because their kid is off to school until you're the parent.
Can't believe she's growing up. I can't say it's gone by too fast because I feel like I've been able to enjoy it with her and not miss much of it at all. Although I've been busy the past couple of months with the winery and getting it all set up, I've also had a lot of quality time with my girls and it's been fantastic. I'll be making sure to make time for them going forward as well, regardless of how busy I get.
We went up to the cashier stand and bought the backpack. The cashier was a nice lady who asked Kali whether she was going to preschool or kindergarten. Kali said preschool and the cashier said her daughter was going to 3rd grade. Then it hit me.......Kali is going to preschool. It always silly when another parent gets emotional because their kid is off to school until you're the parent.
Can't believe she's growing up. I can't say it's gone by too fast because I feel like I've been able to enjoy it with her and not miss much of it at all. Although I've been busy the past couple of months with the winery and getting it all set up, I've also had a lot of quality time with my girls and it's been fantastic. I'll be making sure to make time for them going forward as well, regardless of how busy I get.
Thursday, August 12, 2010
Bathtime quotes.......
Only during Kali 3.6 bathtime at our house would you get the following quality information.
"Dad, did you know that the word 'butt' is in the word 'butterfly'?"
----and----
"Whoa, I just made bubbles in the water with my butt!"
"Dad, did you know that the word 'butt' is in the word 'butterfly'?"
----and----
"Whoa, I just made bubbles in the water with my butt!"
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
See, no clothes!
Kali 3.6 went out to swimming lessons today. When she got back, Mrs. Lime had a Happy Meal for her. Kali proceeded to take off her swimsuit and start eating.
Me: Kali, is there a reason you're eating your hamburger naked?
Kali: No, it's a cheeseburger.
Yes, forget the whole nudity thing. It's important to note that there was a slice of cheese on her sandwich that Daddy failed to acknowledge.
Me: Kali, is there a reason you're eating your hamburger naked?
Kali: No, it's a cheeseburger.
Yes, forget the whole nudity thing. It's important to note that there was a slice of cheese on her sandwich that Daddy failed to acknowledge.
Thursday, August 05, 2010
Day after day.......
My life is like Groundhog Day at this point. Take care of kids, go out to work at winery, take guests through winery for possible events, and come home to hang out with family and do anything I didn't already do that day. For not technically having a job right now, I sure am busy. So busy that I realized I haven't posted to the blog in a week. Goodness.
Today I'm hoping to get some tiling work done at the winery. It needs to get done so we can cross that off the list. I'm sure there will be other fires to put out, but that's a good start. Hopefully I'll remember to blog a bit sooner that a week from now.
Today I'm hoping to get some tiling work done at the winery. It needs to get done so we can cross that off the list. I'm sure there will be other fires to put out, but that's a good start. Hopefully I'll remember to blog a bit sooner that a week from now.
Thursday, July 29, 2010
We have a tooth!
Giselle 0.8 has been a bit grumpy over the past few days. As noted, we thought it sounded like teething. Well, wonder no more. A small, white object is now peeking through her bottom gums. A tooth!
Giselle isn't nearly as excited as Kali 3.5 and I were to find it, but she'll get over it soon enough.
Giselle isn't nearly as excited as Kali 3.5 and I were to find it, but she'll get over it soon enough.
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Monday, July 26, 2010
Teething monster alert!!!!!!
Giselle 0.8 is looking for anything to bite or chew on right now. She's got the occasional grumpies (which are rare for her) and voices her displeasure when there isn't a chewing object available. Mrs. Lime just ran to the store to pick up some Ora-gel for her gums. She's going to grab some teething toys to put in the freezer as well.
Until then, I get to try to convince Giselle that it's not a big deal. Early returns say she's not buying what I'm selling.
Until then, I get to try to convince Giselle that it's not a big deal. Early returns say she's not buying what I'm selling.
Sunday, July 25, 2010
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
We have mobility!
Been really busy the past week with the winery and a brief vacation to the Lake of the Ozarks, but we're finally back.
I see trouble in my future. I sat down Giselle 0.7 on her play mat on the floor this evening. I went into the kitchen for maybe two minutes at the most to help Kali 3.5 get a snack. When we returned to the living room, I found Giselle and Tinkerbell 1.9 nose to nose. Only one problem........Tinkerbell hadn't moved since we went into the kitchen, but Giselle had somehow moved eight feet across the floor!
Determined to figure out the cause of this eight foot movement, I placed Giselle back on the play mat and sat back to watch what happens. Over the next three minutes, I saw Giselle scoot and roll over the same eight feet to Tinkerbell to play with her paw. Tinkerbell was very well behaved other than the occasional big wet kiss that a Saint Bernard can hand out.
End result is that my daughter can now move. Time to put up the baby gate on the stairs!
I see trouble in my future. I sat down Giselle 0.7 on her play mat on the floor this evening. I went into the kitchen for maybe two minutes at the most to help Kali 3.5 get a snack. When we returned to the living room, I found Giselle and Tinkerbell 1.9 nose to nose. Only one problem........Tinkerbell hadn't moved since we went into the kitchen, but Giselle had somehow moved eight feet across the floor!
Determined to figure out the cause of this eight foot movement, I placed Giselle back on the play mat and sat back to watch what happens. Over the next three minutes, I saw Giselle scoot and roll over the same eight feet to Tinkerbell to play with her paw. Tinkerbell was very well behaved other than the occasional big wet kiss that a Saint Bernard can hand out.
End result is that my daughter can now move. Time to put up the baby gate on the stairs!
Thursday, July 15, 2010
Profound wisdom............
In the backyard...........
Me: What are you doing?
Kali 3.5: I'm blowing with my mouth to make wind so the trees move.
Me: That's crazy. You can't do that.
Kali: You don't understand, Daddy. I can use my mouth and my lips to blow air. See? (points at limbs that are moving 40 foot up the tree)
Me: I stand corrected. You've done a fine job of making wind.
Me: What are you doing?
Kali 3.5: I'm blowing with my mouth to make wind so the trees move.
Me: That's crazy. You can't do that.
Kali: You don't understand, Daddy. I can use my mouth and my lips to blow air. See? (points at limbs that are moving 40 foot up the tree)
Me: I stand corrected. You've done a fine job of making wind.
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
Pushing the buttons........
I'm still learning this whole parenting thing, but I'm getting better slowly but surely. I'm baffled why I push all the right parenting buttons with ease at some times while I screw it up royally at other times. I have learned a lot about body language and non-verbal information when interacting with other adults and older kids. But none of that works with a three year old. It can be very frustrating.
There are some times that things work great with Kali 3.5, who is blessed (or not) with being my first opportunity at parenting. I use the right positive/negative reinforcement at the time that draws out the exact reaction I'm looking for with my comments. It's fantastic to find that sweet spot and both Kali and I both are happier when that happens.
When I do a lousy job, we both end up frustrated. At the time, you get so frustrated that you're not pushing the right buttons. It's not necessarily anyone's fault. I'm just not very good at reading the needs and emotions of a three year old girl. It's the thing you say will never happen to you as a parent, yet here I am trying to put the whole puzzle together.
Hopefully Kali doesn't get too damaged by my futile (at times) parenting efforts. Giselle 0.7 should have a much better time of things. I'll have it all figured out the second time around, right?
There are some times that things work great with Kali 3.5, who is blessed (or not) with being my first opportunity at parenting. I use the right positive/negative reinforcement at the time that draws out the exact reaction I'm looking for with my comments. It's fantastic to find that sweet spot and both Kali and I both are happier when that happens.
When I do a lousy job, we both end up frustrated. At the time, you get so frustrated that you're not pushing the right buttons. It's not necessarily anyone's fault. I'm just not very good at reading the needs and emotions of a three year old girl. It's the thing you say will never happen to you as a parent, yet here I am trying to put the whole puzzle together.
Hopefully Kali doesn't get too damaged by my futile (at times) parenting efforts. Giselle 0.7 should have a much better time of things. I'll have it all figured out the second time around, right?
Monday, July 12, 2010
TP! TP!
How much toilet paper can a home full of women use? It sure seems like a lot. I try to purchase a large quantity of toilet paper so I don't have to make supply runs too often. Yet it still seems (much like tonight) that the supply dwindles to nothing in no time at all.
Our saving grace is that we don't have a cat in the house that unrolls all the toilet paper rolls. That would increase our problems dramatically.
Our saving grace is that we don't have a cat in the house that unrolls all the toilet paper rolls. That would increase our problems dramatically.
Saturday, July 10, 2010
Phrases my daughter uses now........
You're the boss, applesauce.
That is correct.
OK, Mr. Silly.
Holy moly.
Oh my goodness.
What did you say??????
Giselle's not screaming, she's talking!
I had to wash my feet because Papa's buildings are dirty!
I pulled a weed, I fell down and I can't get up (Papa says this phrase applies to him as well).
Papa needs railings on his stairs. It's dangerous!
That is correct.
OK, Mr. Silly.
Holy moly.
Oh my goodness.
What did you say??????
Giselle's not screaming, she's talking!
I had to wash my feet because Papa's buildings are dirty!
I pulled a weed, I fell down and I can't get up (Papa says this phrase applies to him as well).
Papa needs railings on his stairs. It's dangerous!
Wednesday, July 07, 2010
Smarter than she should be.......
Kali 3.4 has a pretty advanced mind for her age. She thinks on the fly really well. The other day she was writing people's names on paper. We worked through a few different names that she asked me how they were spelled. After that, she wrote down a name all by herself and brought it over to me. I read it and couldn't figure out what it said. I told her that she must have spelled it incorrectly.
Her response: "No, it's the name of a stranger that you don't know. That's why you don't know who it is!"
I stand corrected.
Her response: "No, it's the name of a stranger that you don't know. That's why you don't know who it is!"
I stand corrected.
Sunday, July 04, 2010
Cute baby wins.............
We went to Worlds of Fun a couple of days ago. We met a few friends there and they were checking out Giselle 0.7. No problems finding someone to take care of the baby if I was riding a ride.
As we walked through the park, Giselle was the center of attention. Teenage girls were tapping their friends on the shoulders to show them the cute baby who was smiling and bouncing her legs in excitement every time someone noticed her. Moms and dads with grown kids were pointing at the cute chubby baby.
Kali 3.4 had a fun, but rough night. She was playing chase with another girl and managed to take a header on the sidewalk, leaving a nice round bruise on her forehead. While initially upset, she was more embarrassed than hurt after a few minutes. She blew it off and got back to riding rides as quickly as possible. Tough girl.
As we walked through the park, Giselle was the center of attention. Teenage girls were tapping their friends on the shoulders to show them the cute baby who was smiling and bouncing her legs in excitement every time someone noticed her. Moms and dads with grown kids were pointing at the cute chubby baby.
Kali 3.4 had a fun, but rough night. She was playing chase with another girl and managed to take a header on the sidewalk, leaving a nice round bruise on her forehead. While initially upset, she was more embarrassed than hurt after a few minutes. She blew it off and got back to riding rides as quickly as possible. Tough girl.
Thursday, July 01, 2010
Who's louder?
Kali 3.4 always has plenty to say. She's three after all. But of late, there's a new mouth in town.
Giselle 0.7 has decided that she should have a say in all conversations. When I say all conversations, I do mean all. She's constantly making sure that any conversation involves her. She'll interrupt the chatter with a scream, babble, giggle, or anything else that gets everyone else's attention. Once someone turns to acknowledge her chatter, she just smiles back. She's always very happy to see someone else paying attention to her.
Hopefully Kali doesn't pick up on that and use it for attention as well. We can only stand so much noise in the house.
Giselle 0.7 has decided that she should have a say in all conversations. When I say all conversations, I do mean all. She's constantly making sure that any conversation involves her. She'll interrupt the chatter with a scream, babble, giggle, or anything else that gets everyone else's attention. Once someone turns to acknowledge her chatter, she just smiles back. She's always very happy to see someone else paying attention to her.
Hopefully Kali doesn't pick up on that and use it for attention as well. We can only stand so much noise in the house.
Monday, June 28, 2010
Pruning, pruning, and more pruning.......
I went through the vineyard today and did a ton of pruning of all the vines. Too many leaves and vines surrounding the grapes are a bad thing, so we have to take out a lot of the extra foliage that isn't producing any grapes. The good thing was that the weather cooperated. 85 degrees and sunny isn't bad at all. I never have minded the heat too much as long as I'm busy doing something.
Beauty (Papa's horse) has been playing games with one of the workers who fills her water. She's been knocking over the water tank so he has to come into the pen and put it back up. I think he's going to bolt the tank to the wall to try to stop her. I'm thinking the Clydesdale may win.
Beauty (Papa's horse) has been playing games with one of the workers who fills her water. She's been knocking over the water tank so he has to come into the pen and put it back up. I think he's going to bolt the tank to the wall to try to stop her. I'm thinking the Clydesdale may win.
Thursday, June 24, 2010
Very perceptive.........
The other day, we we're packing up the family to head out to dinner. Mrs. Lime took Kali 3.4 and put her in the car. I came out a minute later with Giselle 0.6. As I was approaching the car, I realized that I was carrying Giselle and didn't have her car seat. I said 'whoops' and Mrs. Lime chuckled at me. When I went back in the house, Without anything being said by Mrs. Lime, Kali turned to Mrs. Lime and said, "Daddy forgot Giselle's car seat".
She's getting a bit TOO smart for her age.
She's getting a bit TOO smart for her age.
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
Short on time and pounds.........
I'm getting the 'short timer' comments around work pretty often now. I'm being sent off to the non-IT world. I'll soon be managing a three year old and a six month old. Now THAT'S a challenge.
I've also been working on getting into better shape. I'm not sure it's even a diet. I've just cut my fat intake, eat mostly chicken and turkey, and exercise on the elliptical for 15 minutes a day. Really not a huge sacrifice, but it's paying big dividends. I'm down 17 lbs. in 3 1/2 weeks and only about 8 lbs. from a good weight for me. Not bad at all. I'll be doing more manual labor over the next couple of months, which should help build more muscle and lose a bit more weight.
I've also been working on getting into better shape. I'm not sure it's even a diet. I've just cut my fat intake, eat mostly chicken and turkey, and exercise on the elliptical for 15 minutes a day. Really not a huge sacrifice, but it's paying big dividends. I'm down 17 lbs. in 3 1/2 weeks and only about 8 lbs. from a good weight for me. Not bad at all. I'll be doing more manual labor over the next couple of months, which should help build more muscle and lose a bit more weight.
Friday, June 18, 2010
Ma'am, your headlights are on......
You know, there are some days when you really want to tell that 75 year old woman in your office, "Did you know that 30 year old shirt that you are wearing clearly allows people to see your bra?"
I restrained myself from saying it, but it was difficult. Good thing I'm on my best behavior today.
I restrained myself from saying it, but it was difficult. Good thing I'm on my best behavior today.
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
It's not that difficult to follow the rules.......
At my current workplace, they have a pretty simple dress code. You can wear jeans and a button-up shirt if you're a guy. You can wear just about anything except halter tops and flip-flops if you're a lady.
So what do several of the ladies do? They wear flip-flops and halter tops. As a result, management is going to crack down and issue a much tougher dress code. It would have never changed had everyone stayed within the rules. Now, it's going to be dress code armaggedeon and the same people breaking the rules are now going to complain about the new rules. Mindless, I tell you.
So what do several of the ladies do? They wear flip-flops and halter tops. As a result, management is going to crack down and issue a much tougher dress code. It would have never changed had everyone stayed within the rules. Now, it's going to be dress code armaggedeon and the same people breaking the rules are now going to complain about the new rules. Mindless, I tell you.
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