Category: Curie Months

Curie April 2014. Curie weighs in at 23 pounds and 5 ounces, and stands two feet ten inches tall. This month we went to New Orleans right after Bernard and his family visited. Curie tried and now loves crawfish even though it was a little spicy. She loves to fly and makes the “NEE-AW!” sound for planes. This was the first time Curie had her own seat.

From New Orleans, Curie and Albert flew back by themselves. Albert introduced Curie to M&Ms (when we were kids we called them MMMs, Curie doesn’t call them that), and to eating Reese’s Miniatures with a tissue so that she doesn’t get her hands dirty. They had a delayed flight and as a result had a 10 minute connection. Albert told Curie they had to run to which she replied “Let’s do it!” What a kid. Once on the plane (they made it, Albert ran 10 gates carrying backpack, camera bag, Curie and Curie’s bag), instead of making a fuss (which she had before) about the seat belt, she buckled herself up without asking – surprising Albert.

As we mentioned before, Grampy passed away, but before he did we went up with Julie to see him and Nana. The kids couldn’t go in to see Grampy, but they did get to see Nana. Erin showed Grampy a picture of Elia, which he appreciated. After we came back, Curie would ask about Grampy, and when he passed, she said “at least he is safe.” What a kid. Later that week at day care, she said she saw Grampy after a nap.

While up in Massachusetts, we visited Andy and Lynn in his new home, Curie played with Poppop, and Grandma, and we went to Easter service. This past week we went to National Harbor and the next day to Clemyjontri Park to ride merry-go-rounds, at Clemyjontri, we went with Candace and Bella (Curie’s “best friend”) who took great care of Curie. Steve’s parents visited too and we all went out to dinner.

This week Albert goes to Thailand (hence the early posting) for work. When he goes on trips he takes Curie’s rabbit, “Hop” with him; we Facetime and talk every day, and Erin is charged with the Picture a Day. It is particularly hard on Erin as Curie is a little sick and has to stay home (Julie and Candace have been great in offering to help). Albert has been spending a lot of time with the kids before he goes, playing trains, and cooking, and eggs, and watching Thomas and Friends, or Curious George, or Calliou, or Peppa Pig (oh, Curie is Curie Pig, Albert is Daddy Pig, Erin is Mommy Pig, and Elia is George). With Elia, he holds her while she sleeps (like Erin usually does). Time feels short and Albert gets a little moody before leaving so the time with the kids is especially important. Travel for work is exciting and fun, but without the family, it is time away – missing out on the day-to-day, the smiles and the frowns, the laughter and the tears, watching the kids as the days go past; never mind the wonders of the world, it is enough to play at home.

Curie March 2014. Curie graduates to underwear. Prompted by the peer pressure of her friends wearing underwear at school, Curie has taken to asking for underwear and telling us when she needs to potty. We are at 4 straight public successes. Yay Curie!

Curie’s month included the visit from Suephy, Jared and Dylan who brought Curie Dylan’s Thomas collection. Talk about heaven, 20 – 30 trains, tracks and Tidmouth station on top of the Legos and things they already gave her. What an amazing gift – thank you Suephy, Ed, Jared, and Dylan! Over the years friends and family have given us their hand-me downs, toys, and books so that we have not had to buy so much for our kids, for this we are grateful, we hope some day to pay it forward.

Curie has had night terrors recently, and we have had to comfort her when she wakes. Okay, so it has been twice so far, but she is inconsolable for an hour or so. We understand that this is normal, but it is wrenching nonetheless – other parents, do you feel protective and helpless at the same time? Curie ended the month with a fever while Bernard, Agnes, Eleanor and Miranda visited and right before our trip to New Orleans. Along with Erin’s upcoming conference, and Albert’s recent return from Copenhagen, it makes for challenging time – protective and helpless.Curie’s needy time is still with Erin, no one calms the kids down faster than Erin, and when the crying starts and the comfort is needed, Erin is the one Curie goes to.

When Albert returned from his trip he and Curie sat in a hug in front of the television for almost an hour. Every day since then, Albert asks Curie “have I already told you today?” She says “yes.” Albert says, “I love you Curie,” Curie replies, “I love you too.” Albert took Curie’s spare rabbit on his trip.

As we have said, Curie loves surprise eggs and Easter has been a crazy time of opening eggs. We try to find non-candy eggs, but it is not easy. Playmobil makes a great line. We are likely going to have to buy eggs when they go on clearance for later, and it may be that Easter is Curie’s holiday.

Normally we end with a thought of the day, however, Albert has started writing again recently (for those of you who didn’t know, he fancies himself a writer). Here is an unedited excerpt that is a little autobiographical and pertains to our daughters: “upon my deathbed, when I am infirm and insensate, I will lose all track of time and all sense of reality; I will be transported once again with my infant daughter snuggled against my neck in the wee hours of the morning, and in the still and deafeningly quiet, marked with the sound of her breathing,  I will think to myself that this is worth remembering when it is time to die.” Cherish the time.

From Facebook: Curie may not remember when she is older, but the best times are the simple family times, where she sings in the bed, reads us Green Eggs and Ham, and we go into the tunnel and look for “scaary lions,” where in a low two year old voice while shaking her head, she roars “rawr!”

Curie February 2014. Curie loves the conveyor belt sushi restaurant which we have dubbed the “sushi choo-choo” restaurant. The other day she told us she wanted to go to the sushi choo-choo restaurant, which we thought was very cute; the thing is, Curie is crazy smart and we just didn’t know it. You see, Curie loves surprise eggs, and every time we go to the sushi choo-choo restaurant, she gets a Kinder egg (which are illegal in the US) from the candy store and instead of asking for an egg from the candy store, she asked to go to the sushi choo-choo restaurant without tipping her hand. Crazy smart right? On the other hand, at the restaurant itself, Curie has already gotten edamame, tomago, and fruit for herself AND returned the covers to the conveyor belt even before we have ordered drinks. Other families tell their kids to not touch the sushi, we ask Curie to get our orders.

The whole family got sick this month (not from the sushi). We tried really hard to keep it from Elia, but in the end she succumbed too. For Erin’s birthday, we did a staycation at the Sheraton Premiere, but Albert had the shakes in the middle of the night from being so tired and sick that he rolled himself into a hot bath to raise his core body temperature and fell asleep – scaring Erin. We are mostly better now, though Erin has caught another cold.

In February, we went to the Udvar Hazy Center Smithsonian Air and Space museum (twice, the second time with Erin’s parents and sister) to see the “space ship” (space shuttle). Curie’s favorite airplane is a yellow Naval Aircraft Factory N3N that hangs above the SR-71, Albert’s favorite. Upon entering the museum she immediately said “that’s my favorite,” about the yellow plane. Incidentally Erin’s favorite plane is the Concorde, Jim’s is the P-40 Curtis-Wright Warhawk, Julie’s was the space shuttle, and Brenda’s was the sail plane.

Erin returned to work at the end of the month, somehow the whole experience seems faster this time around. Having two kids is a little more hectic (those of you with three or more – more power to you), you have less time for either child. Curie gets less than before “put Elia down!” And Elia, as the second child gets fewer bright-eyed photos (we think Elia sleeps more than Curie did, but it may be an optical-illusion based on the fact that we had time to take pictures of Curie when she was looking at the camera). In any case, everything seems faster, more hectic, and with less time to enjoy our time together – which makes each moment something you have to intentionally slow down to savor and appreciate. The moments are always precious – whether it is leaving work at a good time, putting down the camera to hold the children, watching Thomas instead of the news, having a happy life is finding the time to appreciate the value of those moments.

Oh and congratulate Erin, she is officially the Chief Development and Engagement Officer at NatureServe as of yesterday. 

Curie January 2014. Curie learns to have a sister. It is remarkable to see Curie as a little girl – up until when Elia was born, Curie was our baby. More than one parent has described this phenomena to us, where all of the sudden Curie seems so big.

At two and a half, she loves her trains with three different sets (thank you to Suephy and Ed, Shaun and Chris, and Cy and Librada for the trains), knows all the names of Thomas and Friends, and loves to play “ramper” which is making a long ramp jump from train tracks and running cars and trains down through a hoop. She has sings a wide range of songs now including “Eidel-bise,” and is always asking what you are singing when she doesn’t know it. We said goodbye to Brenda, had Suephy and Taylor visit, and spent time with the Hoaglands and Tamanahas.

It has been an interesting month for us; with Elia coming home, Curie has been overjoyed, achingly caring, and a little needing of attention. Normally, when she is tired she wants Mommy and when she is rested she wants Daddy, but in the past month she has wanted both of us at the same time, when Albert gets up, she says “Daddy, lay down!”

The flashes of jealousy manifest with things like the boppies being hers again, asking to put Elia down, or asking to pick her up instead of Elia. No eating newspaper like Suephy did when Albert was born. We try to make the extra effort to hold her and play with her and make her feel special still. It is hard sometimes to balance giving her attention and giving in.

On the other hand, Curie can be gentle when she asks to hold Elia, and is terribly proud when Elia stops crying when she holds her or sings lullabies to her. Curie loves her sister and is quick to show you what Elia is doing. It hasn’t been easy having two kids, to all of you parents out there who have already done it, more power to you. With the lack of sleep, the divided attention, and the adjustment of having another member of the family, we are simultaneously overwhelmed and in awe that we are finally together.

When it is late at night, and the two girls are asleep, when you are too exhausted to clean, too overwhelmed to work, and too tired to sleep; you check to see if the baby is breathing, you put your hand on your two year old’s back and let her snuggle up against you, and in the deafening quiet of the night, before the baby wakes up again, you take it all in, give yourself a moment, and are grateful for everything.

 

Curie December 2013. So I will admit I do not know how to do the collages going forward. To date these have been Curie’s but with the birth of Elia, I guess we will be doing two a month. So Elia is not shortchanged, I will do the picture a day collage of her on the 19th of each month just like we did for Curie in her first year; after that she will get her own monthly collage.

December was a challenging month with Erin on bed rest and Albert doing all the chores as well as bringing Curie to and from school. We relearned the power of friendship through the kindness of the Hoaglands, and paid it forward shoveling out our then also-pregnant next-day neighbors and salted the neighborhood walkways.

Curie loves the Sound of Music (Julie Andrews version) and sings “Doe a Deer” in its entirety (video clip sometime later). Her favorite song lately is “Love is All” by Playing for Change to which she twirls to. Curie continues her independence and wants to do things “on ma own.” She loves to play “basketball” with a hoop in the living room And loves to play “tunnel” with her blanket/comforter.

We are lucky that she was not born in Barney or Tele-tubbies, so Curie’s favorite shows are Curious George, Thomas, and Super Why. She does love to watch YouTube of people opening Kinder eggs and similar thing (anyone else seen this? It really doesn’t make any sense).

The biggest thing is of course Elia’s birth which deserves its own entry, but as it relates to Curie, she still hasn’t met her “baby sisser” yet though we hope that will be soon. In anticipation, Curie bought Elia a Curious George (and one for herself), has diapered her stuffed animals and knows Elia has been born: “baby sisser name is Eleee-a, she cute!”

So two daughters, one an independent young girl, the other an infant ready to take on the world. We haven’t even begun the feedings yet and we are exhausted and cabin-fevery – Albert thinks the reason for parental leave is so that you don’t make work decisions impaired.  Elia and Erin are doing great, Curie is a little needy, but that is from us going to the hospital all the time. Albert is a basket case, but has been since childhood.

One thing about having a child that applies to both Curie and Elia (Curie’s birth story is on our site, but not published yet): there is a moment before they operate where the husband sits in paper scrubs and a mask in a room by himself while they prep the mother for OR. In those interminable minutes, you remember how fragile life is and how precious what you have is. Then there is the flurry of activity, holding each other’s hand, the c-section, and the wait for the baby’s cry. For both Curie and Elia, hearing the doctor say that they are healthy and hearing them cry, at that moment, that was all that mattered; you think life is right, life is good, and anything that will happen will happen, and that too is right.

Curie November 2013. A little late in getting this out. Curie becomes a person – fully formed opinions: pie over cake, pumpkin pie over cherry pie, chocolate pie over pumpkin, chocolates over pie, vanilla ice cream over chocolate ice cream, and gummies over chocolate – most of the time.

In November, we had, as everyone did, Thanksgiving at home with turkey, and all the trimmings. We went to Erin’s Nana and Grampy’s family reunion in Massachusetts for the annual family reunion and Yankee swap. Albert once again emcee’d.

Erin dragged Albert and Curie kicking and screaming to a farm in Virginia, okay Albert, not Curie, which turned out to be very cool.  Pumpkin destruction, over-sized plastic cows, corn mazes and the like, but they also had playgrounds in the shape of Noah’s ark, castles, John Deere tractors etc. And then… watching Curie feed the ducks, bunnies, and chickens something magical. We ended the day with pie, french silk chocolate over pumpkin you know.

After our trip to Strasburg to see the trains, Curie has talked about “our train,” and her “Thomas,” so we donned backpacks and took the train to Baltimore and from there took the light rail to the science museum there. After a quick trip we took the train back and with a very happy little girl had dinner with friends at home.

Life can throw you a lot of curves, and there will always be the weight of what the day may bring, but when you have a family to come home to, people who love you, you understand the cliche of family as the bedrock. And when life gets you down,  and your daughter takes your face in her hands and looks at you with absolute seriousness and asks “are you sad?” You appreciate what love can do for you to mend whatever happened that day.

Curie October 2013. Halloween is tonight and Curie is going to be Superman. We don’t have a picture yet, but you probably get the idea from all the Superman shirts she wears. This month Albert went to Mexico City and Ann Arbor and Curie grew like crazy while he was gone. She converses with us now, and has a memory like steel trap. Erin asked Albert to buy apple juice in the morning and when he got home that evening, Curie, unprompted asked “daddy buy apple juice?” Then the next day when he did buy apple juice Curie clapped and said “good job Daddy!”

We have had to learn boundaries (must not let her get spoiled – though how do you not when the temptation to give her little things to make her happy is so great?), and Curie learned the concept of “after” one night. After a long while of crying and patiently explaining, we realized- she totally gets “after,” it’s “first” she wants.” Fortunately she was good with “after” and we are able to give her treats “after” dinner and not “first.” When she wants something she knows she shouldn’t have she says that she just wants “one more,” or a “leel bit” and holds up her index finger.

Erin made Curie a bedtime chart and we have started working on getting her to sleep on her own. She is good with getting stickers for bath, diapers, books, prayers, kisses, and such, but has not yet gotten the concept of putting the sticker in the right place. Free spirit that two year-olds are, she puts the sticker wherever she wants. Curie goes to the potty regularly, still proud, still claps, still empties out the potty herself and washes her hands. She cooks in her kitchen and wants to help with everything.

This month we went to Tim’s Rivershore for fried clams – a lot, Erin’s mother came down to help while Albert was gone, we went to the Hoagland Halloween party where we were Security this year (not really, last year we came as safety inpsectors), and we went to Strasburg to see the trains – twice, one day after the other because Curie liked it so much. She talks all the time about “our train” now and how after the first night, the  “train went home.” Curie was not that much of a Thomas the Tank engine girl before this, but now the trains are the best. She does, however, differentiate between “my train” and “my Thomas,” probably because our train (the 475) was not blue and did not have a face.

Curie has always been between 0% to 11% or so on the growth chart, at her last appointment she hit 11% in weight and 28% in height. Go Curie! She has been singing Happy Birthday, ABCs, and Old Mac Donald a lot. She accompanies herself on her “lil ‘tar” and her piano. Her piano is the funniest thing in the world to us, she stands on it and plays with her feet singing at the top of her voice. And at night she plays with her cow that sings Old Mac Donald and kicks her feet like the cow does. The time each day is precious and it is all we can do to try to hold on to each moment. A picture a day, a video on occasion, a high five, a bump, and a beep (our variation), and a kiss good night…”my piddow! My piddow! Daddy you sleep here, that Mommy’s piddow! You sleep here!” Ah – wouldn’t trade it for the world.

Curie September 2013. Something magical happens when you start to have conversations with your child for the first time. “Are you okay?” “I otay!” “Daddy otay?” “Daddy’s okay.” “Mommy otay?” “Mommy’s okay.” You learn things that may or may not be real – “How did you get your ow?” “I fall down,” “Where did you fall down?” “At home.” “How did you fall down?” “Na’lee did it. (Curie got hurt at school, her friend Natalie almost certainly did not do it because it is the same response for any “ow”).

As we wrote earlier, Curie turned two (see the Curie Turns Two pictures), and in that time she moved to the twos room at day care, exploded in conversation, independence “I dood it, I dood it!” got to eat gummies for the first time, and has taken to diapering everything from dolls to stuffed animals. For those of you who have suspected, Albert has continued his picture a day since Curie turned one and it is remarkable to watch her grow from day to day all over again (if you would like to see 365 Year 2, please go to our website photoblog – let us know if you would like the URL).

We went on a crab crawl in the beginning of the month, went bowling for Curie’s first time, and went apple picking in the days after her birthday which included a hay ride which she did not like and a cow that ate her apple, which left a very large impression – “cow ate m’apple!” -even a week later. Curie loves her musical instruments and loves the piano (thank you Taylor and Eric) and guitar she received for her birthday. In addition, she got one of those laptops that you hook up to a computer so that you can send her stuff, a drawing table and chairs, and a kitchen from Ikea.

We never thought we would buy her a kitchen, since it perpetuates the stereotype, blah blah blah (still no easy bake oven, Barbie dolls, or princesses – why be a princess when you could be President or King?), but in our family Albert does most of the cooking and Erin acts as sous chef. Whenever Albert cooks or grills, Curie wants to help -“I help, I help…I help daddy!” So we bought her the kitchen from Ikea. Albert had an issue with the light up burners that don’t make heat, but that is okay now. The most interesting thing besides the fact that she loves it (calls it her “chicken”), cuts all the wooden food for us, and makes us soup and pizza, is this: right away she said “my sink broken, it no work,” because it did not actually pour water.

Albert started a new job this month and drives to Bethesda now for work, it is better for us, YFU for those of you interested, but he leaves earlier now so can’t hang out with Curie in the morning like he used to, ends earlier, but doesn’t take advantage of that. Erin has taken on more at work and at home, she is more tired now and sleeps earlier so that she can work out before going to work. Curie plays with kids at school now instead of around them “I play friends!” She makes pizza in her kitchen, counts to three (or six) and jumps off her chairs, and falls to sleep watching “monkey.” Life is changing for us (took us a lot longer to get this out), but that is good. We get home, have dinner, do “bubbles (bath),” and then getting ready for bed, she will say “big hug (group hug)!” and tell Erin “I kiss daddy!” or tell Albert “I kiss mommy!” Lights out, with a sleepy family by your side. Life is pretty good.