Lily's quote of the week

I was serving up a very tasty dinner of Baked Chicken Cacciatore Monday night, and as I dished the food onto Lily's plate, she says "Oooh, nice". Not that she ate more than three bites of it, but that's another story...

I also have to share our adventures in driving home tonight. Of course, five minutes before we left the school, the sky decided to open up and spew an inordinate amount of rain down upon us. Luckily, it is only about an 8-minute drive home. As we are driving in the blinding downpour and hydroplaning over the large puddles in the road, Lily begins laughing hysterically. She was so amused by the loud rain, thunder and lightning all around her. I'm afraid that we have a thrill-seeker on our hands.

Playdate with Nathan

Ready for our grilled cheese, please!

Makin' sweet music together

Our favorite card game: throw all the cards on the floor and watch our mommies pick them up.

I've been working 10 hours a day/4 days per week for the past couple of weeks so that I can have a "mommy and me day" each week with Lily. This week, we had arranged a playdate with Nathan and Jen. The weekends are usually so busy with things that we need to get done that we don't get the chance to get together with friends nearly as much as we would like. We were so happy to have the opportunity to catch up today. I can't believe that these 2 little monkeys are going to be 2 years old in less than 4 months!

Lilly's latest

Lily attempts to say pretty much every word we say, no matter how difficult, which results in some funny "words" from her. Among the more amazing things that Lily can do now are: count to three, recognize the color purple, recognize circles consistently and squares some of the time, and use four-word "sentences". One of her not-so-brilliant behaviors recently is to find any small, tight spaces in which to get "guk" (stuck). She actually looks at the space (such as under the kitchen table or chairs) and repeats "guk, guk, guk" until she manages to wedge her body into position to inevitably get stuck. That's my genius baby.

Why I love my job

All of the things that make me laugh and contribute to my overwhelming job satisfaction cannot be found in any job description. Here are just a few recent highlights from my days...

• Bead extraction from a child's nostril (who says the game Operation doesn't prepare you for life?)
• Happy visits to the office for going pee-pee on the potty
• A child "giving me his heart" each and every night before he leaves by putting his hands on his chest and making a throwing motion toward my heart (priceless)

One of the Family Medicine Physicians that Carl currently works with keeps a journal of things that his patients have said over the years. I really wish that I had done this in all my previous years of experience working with the 0-5 crowd. I'll try to post some of my favorite quotes from time to time because they are guaranteed to make you smile. One recent comment that stands out is from a little boy around 4 years old. He was having a conversation with one of the teachers about the weather (supposed to be a harmless, neutral subject, right?). The teacher had said that it looked like it was going to rain that day. He remarked "that stinks". She said that it was good because rain helps things grow. He inquired what would grow, to which she responded "the plants and trees". He sat quietly, lost in thought for a moment, and then retorted "Yeah, well, it doesn't help my 'peanut' grow any". It goes without saying to what he was referring. I think parents would be surprised to hear some of the things that their children say at school; it certainly keeps us amused.

Magic 8 ball, where are you?

I go through periods of total preoccupation with our move next year and now is one of those times. The current topic of discussion between Carl and me is how to rank the various residency programs out there. Obviously, location is a huge factor for us. Other considerations include the salary which varies slightly or not-so-slightly depending on your point of view. Also, the area's cost of living is in the mix. Reputation of the school is another consideration. One factor that I really didn't consider much but now seems to be creeping up the list in importance is the number of years of the residency program. Carl will begin the process of applying to residencies in Pathology in September. Some of the programs are 3 years (Anatomic Pathology only) and others are 4 years (combined Clinical and Anatomic Pathology). He could really go either way, but of course, the 3-year programs are less common. This is a major life decision for us that will have an enormous impact on our lives. Ironically, these are the times that Carl becomes cool and collected, and I enter my panic mode. Do we go for shorter time over location? Higher salary/lower cost of living over reputation? I just don't know. This doesn't mean that we are straying from the Midwest plan. We just have to decide the rank order of the schools within the Midwest, not an easy task. Either way, we have until January to decide, just to begin the excruciating process of waiting to find out our ultimate fate on March 20th. Only 240 more days...

Mama Lily

We had an intentionally low-key family weekend - no hassles, no hurry. Lily mostly wanted to take care of her babies, walking them in the doll stroller and putting them in the doll crib for night-night. We did spend some time at the park yesterday, played tennis this morning and spent a very relaxing, wonderful afternoon on the deck this afternoon while Lily splashed in her pool.

Most notable of recent with Lily is the number of times she says "Oh shoot" in a day; it really cracks us up. Another favorite is "guk" (stuck). Also, she is now very consistently pointing out circles in her environment and without prompting; today she found one on our rug and said "circle" while she stood in the middle of it. She is so proud of every word that she says. While we flip through her ABC picture book, she points to the pictures, says the word to me and then says "Daddy [word]" and waits for the praise from Daddy. She is very headstrong and insists that certain pictures depict particular words, like the picture of a pumpkin is without doubt an "apple" and her science card that shows an electromagnet is absolutely, positively "milk". Who knows with that one; maybe someday she'll elucidate her reasoning.

Friday night highlight

Friday nights sure aren't what they used to be...they are so much better. Watching Lily playing on her new bike beats any other plans hands down.

Toddler recipe book

So anyone who knows me knows that I have to have a project to work on constantly. I really feel lost, unfocused and completely out of whack when I don't have a personal project on which to focus my mental energy. My latest project was an ABC book for Lily. I began the project thinking that I would take pictures of our household items so that Lily would have a point of reference for the words, and thus the words would be more meaningful to her. Then I thought about the thousands (no exaggeration) of pictures that we have from Lily's first 20 months of life. Why not just go through the pictures that I already have and see what I can make from them? And so began one of my all-time favorite projects (right up there with the calendars that I made for my family). I had the best time going through all of her baby pictures, but the book is now near completion (just needs to be bound). So, time to move on.

The thing that I am most interested in right now is healthy meal ideas for toddlers, with obvious reason. Sometimes I feel stuck in a rut, offering Lily the same things over and over. I want some new ideas! I've already searched the internet and looked in cookbooks, but I want more. So I'm asking for everyone's help with this one. If you have a young child, have ever had a young child, or just know of a young child, I need your help!! Please submit any and ALL meal ideas to me at kathleendeetz@youngschool.com. Don't be shy! Please tell anyone you can think of that would benefit from this project about it. My goal is to compile all the submissions into a simple recipe book and then send out a copy of it to anyone who submitted ideas.

There are no real guidelines for the recipe book, except that something in it should be considered somewhat healthy. The ideas can be as simple or elaborate as you wish. Even frozen meals or a certain brand of prepackaged food that you've found to be effective with little ones is welcome. My goal is to have a RESOURCE BOOK, something that parents can flip through when they are feeling like they are simply out of new ideas. All children are different and some are obviously more finicky than others but exposure to different foods is what I'm most concerned about. How do we know that they won't eat quinoa if we never try it, right? Recipes for healthier versions of old standbys like mac 'n cheese would be also great. The possibilities are truly endless. Again, the more ideas submitted, the better this book will be, so please pass the word along. It only takes a minute to forward a recipe or two (or three or four...), and you'll end up with a great resource. Thanks for your help!

Please e-mail recipes/ideas by August 15th. My goal is to have the book done and sent out by the beginning of September.

Down by the bay

This was actually our second excursion on Sunday. We started the day by going to the park with Lily and Terra and then decided around 11:00 am to go to the Chesapeake Bay. I'm so glad that we did. The weather (and the water) was warm, and we had a truly wonderful time.

Water park fun

What time we did not spend outdoors on Saturday, we more than made up for on Sunday. On a whim, we decided that we were going to go to Chesapeake Beach which has a nice small beach on the bay as well as a GREAT water park for young children. Most water parks are very large and designed for older children - not so with this water park. Probably half of the park had water levels at 1 1/2 feet or under. As you can see above, they had plenty of slides and fun floaty things for kids to play on. Since it's only an hour and a half from our house, we will likely return here at least one more time this summer.

Saturday studies

We didn't get out much on Saturday - just some shopping in the morning and then an afternoon spent at home together. No more weekend call nights - yay!!! Lily received her new ABC cards in the mail on Friday and has been hooked on them since. I bought them thinking that they were cute for the daughter of a science-maniac but didn't consider having to answer "What's that?" when she's pointing to a card depicting hydrogen bonding :)

Can you say "hot"?

So, we picked quite a week to begin a commitment to spending more time outdoors. 100 degree temperatures with 106 Real Feel temperatures - need I say more? We spent a good bit of time outdoors on Saturday, going to the arboretum, spending the afternoon on the deck in her swimming pool, and going on a family walk. We planned on spending equal amounts of time outside on Sunday but found it to be just too darn hot. We did have a nice time "liming" with Jean and his newlywed wife, Aliyah, indoors though. Despite the unaccommodating weather, we will persevere with our mission to try new activities outdoors - with plenty of fluids, sunscreen, and indoor rest periods, of course.

It seems that in the past week, Lily's language development has taken a giant leap. Her teacher even noted on her Tiny Tidbit report today that she has noticed Lily's words becoming clearer every day. Three-word phrases (like "Hey you Ra Ra") have become more common, and most notably, she has started saying various phrases spontaneously and in context. It used to be that most of her language was centered around things she saw in the environment or books. For example, she would see a puppy and say "puppy" (one of her most clearly pronounced words). Or she would point to pictures and say "E-sa?" ("What's that?") It seems that we have moved past the point and name phase now. Just tonight, she said all of the following phrases that made me take pause: When she dropped her cover up on the ground, she commented "Oh, shoot" (clear as day). While Carl was giving Lily a horsey ride (thanks Ingrid), she reminded herself to "Hold on". She also pointed to the computer and commanded "pictures - Lily". The ultimate, though, is that she now says "I love you". I really feel like we've reached a new level of communication, and while exciting, completely blows me away.

I decided a few days ago that we truly have no idea how much this cheeky monkey actually knows. Lily has a habit of requesting to give Terra a treat, then taking off with the treat, and hiding behind the door of her playhouse, all for the sake of teasing Terra. In order to "trick" Lily into giving Terra the treat, Carl told her to put the treat in the mailbox of the playhouse. She immediately followed the request, while Carl and I looked at each other in wide-eyed amazement (and Terra snatched the treat from the open mailbox). We just didn't realize that she could comprehend - and follow - the direction. It's the little things that happen every day that add up to really be something.

Saturday morning at the Arboretum

Looking sassy on her way to the arboretum (she put the sunglasses on top of her head, by the way)

Lily and mama in the gazebo

Strolling through the gardens

Lilies!

The water pump was the big attraction of the day

Zoo-rific!

I knew that I couldn't have been the only one to think that the Fort Wayne Zoo is awesome. I did an internet search for best zoos, and the Fort Wayne Zoo came up as one of the top 10 zoos in the country according to an article on child.com. Just goes to show that small towns really can hold some wonderful hidden treasures. I was happy to see that the St. Louis Zoo ranked #11 in the poll, and Brookfield in our old stomping grounds of Chicago was #4!

Strawberries, stars & stripes

"Outside"

Lily gets her hands dirty outside by the pond on Great Grandma and Great Grandpa Deetz's beautiful grounds.

Daddy shares his first catch of the day with Lily.

Grandpa Deetz shows Lily the fish that he caught before tossing it back into the pond.

Reclaiming his childhood skills of catching pond animals, Carl shows Lily a baby turtle. Lucky for the turtle, Carl's a big fan of the catch and release program :)

We just returned from a long weekend spent at Carl's grandparents' house in Indiana. Carl has completed his dreaded third year of medical school and has a small break between third and forth year. We decided to take advantage of this time to do our first road trip as a family. It is about 9-10 hours from here to Waterloo, Indiana so this was not a minor endeavor with a 19 1/2-month-old. I have to say though, it went amazingly well. We are so very lucky that Lily is such an easy baby. The plan was to leave the house at 6:30 pm on Friday, drop Terra off at boarding/daycare, and then head down the road to Indiana with an estimated arrival time at 4:00 am. Everything went completely as planned. Lily was awake for about an hour and then fell asleep for the rest of the trip. She woke up once when we stopped, so I moved to the backseat, and she fell fast asleep again when I put my arm around her in the carseat. When we arrived around 4:00 am, we moved her to the bed, and we all slept until around 8:30 am. Carl and I napped with her on Saturday, and we all felt well rested after that.

The trip itself was great, as usual. It was great to get to see the Deetz side of the family which we have not seen in about a year. We spent the weekend catching up, spending lots of unclaimed/unplanned/free/open time in perfect temperatures outside, and enjoying good food with good company. We are already missing Carl's grandma's magic freezer, which seems to contain a never ending supply of homemade frozen meals. It has been my goal for some time to cook in a similar fashion with ready-made meals in store, and I'm feeling re-inspired, so we'll see.

Lily's favorite word on the trip was "outside". She literally could have spent every moment outside and been the happiest girl in town (...or countryside). It made me feel a little guilty that we have no backyard to speak of and just a small deck where we spend time outside. We have already discussed our priorities for our next house, and we re-confirmed that outdoor space is an absolute must, not only for Lily but for Terra too.

Today we are recovering from our travels, but again everything went perfectly on the way home, so we are just planning on taking a nap here or there and catch up with some household chores today. We have no real plans for tomorrow, except for some good old-fashioned family time which Carl and I both enjoy.

Thanks to everyone who made this such a memorable trip; we truly enjoyed it, and it is just what Carl needed. In a way, I really do think that all the Deetz grandchildren need to return to their grandparents' house at least once a year. I think that it holds fond memories for them and continues to be the gathering place where they can rest and relax in beautiful surroundings.

A hoppin' good time

An afternoon with cousins

Hammin' it up

Lovely Little Lainey

Lively Lucy-Goosey

Really, could you get any cuter? Lucy and Lily had a blast jumping on the couch like two little monkeys.

Hugs between cousins

Lily, her Aunt Livy, cousin Lucy, and Uncle Roger

We were so happy to be able to spend Saturday afternoon with Lily's cousins, Lucy and Lainey (Carl's cousin Roger and Nadine's two adorable little girls). This was the very first meeting between all of them, and they really took to each other quickly. We were all sad to have to say goodbye at the end of the day. Hopefully, when we move back to the midwest, the girls will have the chance to get together more often.

More family pics

Lily with her Great Grandpa and Great Grandma Deetz

As with all toddlers, Lily was on the move so we had to snap this picture quickly.

Lily with her Uncle Zander

Getting horsey rides from Aunt Ingrid
Lily thought this was sooo fun and requested playing "neigh" with Aunt Ingrid several times.

Fort Wayne Zoo

Lily hangin' with Carl's cousin, Abby

The wombat tunnel is so much fun!

Little 'roo

Lily's favorite part of the zoo was probably this wading pool. The zoo had about three of these pools for the kids to romp around in - truly a great idea for a zoo.

The infamous lip. You'll always know when Lily is concentrating or soaking in new information when the lip comes out. So funny.

I really can't say enough about the Fort Wayne Zoo. Having been to the zoos in cities like Washington D.C., St. Louis, and Baltimore, the Fort Wayne Zoo has many attractions that outshine these bigger zoos. Unfortunately, my camera quit halfway through our zoo outing, but we were lucky enough to spend Sunday afternoon with Carl's dad and cousin Abby as well as his Aunt Pam and cousin Livy. There were so many things for Lily to see and do there, which is not always the case for kids her age. Highlights of the zoo included the wombat tunnel and the joey pouch on the kangaroo (in the pics above), the sea lion show, the water ride where we toured a section of the zoo in a log canoe (so cute and Lily loved it), the petting zoo set up like an Indiana family farm (one of the cutest configurations I've seen), and of course, the beloved wading pools. There were things that we did not even get to, either because of time constraints (like the Rainforest section and the train ride) or because of Lily not being quite old enough (like the Sky Lift...but how cool?). I did not know that this gem was so close to Carl's grandparents' house in Waterloo, but now that I know, we will make the Fort Wayne Zoo top priority on future trips.