Too tired to care

As you all know, sleep has had a love hate relationship with our household for the last 2 years. Here Maeve was so tired, but refused to go upstairs. She laid down on the floor in the kitchen. I asked if she wanted a blanket, she said, "yeah." I covered her with a silk scarf and apparently this was acceptable. She fell asleep right there on the cold (dirty) kitchen floor.



Notice the winter boots!

The Apple Doesn't Fall Far From the Tree

I'm not sure this is how Mark imagined Maeve would follow in his footsteps.


Now moving on to the real apples....

Headed to the pumpkin patch/apple orchard Sunday with Maeve's childcare gang. It was a tad bit windy - hence the hat to keep the hair out of her eyes. And the jacket, well, that's her new (for next season) rain jacket that the moment it came out of the box, she insisted on having it on. I agree, it's pretty darn cute, but as the weather gets colder, I'm hoping she has enough sense to opt for the down jacket I also got her!

The Letter H....

...brought to you by Maeve. H, is the letter that Maeve creates when she is in bed with Mark and I. Usually her head towards me and her feet in Mark's face. I can't be sure this is inspired by her daily dose of Sesame Street (the old school ones that were on when Mark and I were kids), but it's the only explanation I'm willing to allow for at the moment. It's at least a little comfort to have other parents shaking their heads up and down when they hear this. Apparently it's a popular configuration. Maybe to be sure they are in contact with both mama and pa. Who knows, I just wish she would stay in one place and maybe stop kicking (thankfully I don't have the feet all too often). Maeve then usually compounds the issue by creating multiple positions during the night. This may also include both parents smooshed to the outside edges of the bed and Maeve consuming the middle - of a king size bed.

All I can say is that the recent night time regression we have made seems to be showing up in Maeve's language. Her speech is more clear and much more diverse. Today, Milo held his cup up to her and said, "cheers." I'm not sure she has heard this before, and yet Maeve quickly followed suit and the two toasted each other for awhile. Maeve then proceeded to say "cheers" all through dinner attempting to clink glasses with us. All I can say is that if you are planning to dine with us in the near future, be ready with a raised glass.

At the end of the day, when she smile at me, it does make it all worth it. Hopefully at 2 am tonight I'll remember that.

A Day in the Life of Maeve

As promised, some current pictures. Thankfully Andrea, Maeve's childcare provider has taken a few. I think we probably have too, but man, feels like an insurmountable task to have the camera, take the picture, download the pics, and then upload them here. Whew, that exhaust me just writing about it.

Here we are at drop off time. I can't remember who demanded the book this particular day, but you'll notice, they all saddle up. Of course you know Maeve, Milo is in the foreground and Wren is on my lap. These three little people are all within 4 months of each other with Wren leading the pack. I say that in many senses.

Wren has been teaching Maeve and Milo all sorts of things. Maeve and Milo, being the sponges they are, soak it up and make sure that Wren gets a run for her money.


There are a few variations of this next picture. Wren calls this the "up down." Clearly makes sense. Not sure how all three got focused on different things...but the ham, aka Maeve, is lighting up the camera. I love all their little feet.



Then there is my favorite from this round of Andrea's pictures. I wish Maeve would have kept her head a bit more still so she isn't out of focus, but what can we really expect from a toddler that needs to be in motion all the time. Notice the dirt! Andrea is kind enough to clean them up before she ships them home.

I know, I know

Wow, it has been a long time since I've been seen around here. By now, most of you have probably stopped checking for updates. I'll try to be better. If I can I'll even try to get some photos up here. It can be challenging, but I'm up for it.

What is happening in Maeve Space?

Maeve started in-home child care two days/week. She is loving it! The first day drop off was harder on me than on her, but since then we have all found some peace with it. Maeve hangs out with her beloved buddy Milo and her new friends Wren and Fletcher. Wren is 10 weeks older than Maeve (she'll be 2 in August) and Fletcher is pulling up the rear of the group and will be 1 in August. They all have a blast together. Wren being almost 2 has some moves that she has been sharing with Maeve and Milo. They "fight" over things now and declare items as "mine." Of course it was bound to happen sooner or later, having a 2 year old around has just brought that on a bit sooner. What can you do?

Maeve is adding words to her vocabulary each day. She is a bit like Rainman right now as she practices them. "Down, down, down...pee, pee, pee...poo, poo, poo" The list goes on. It's all rather endearing most of the time. Practicing at 1-4 am is not so fun though. Yes folks, we were all sleeping like perverbial babies until very recently. Apparently the system must be on for the updates a young child's brain gets while rewiring for all the new activities it's about to embark on.

Lots of visits from family. Uncle Brendan and Monica then Uncle Paul and Michelle. Soon Grandpa Evan and Nana Fran will be here then off to Virigina Beach for the Healy compound.

Generally lots of summer time fun - swimming, running around bare foot, ice pops and friends.

There is the update - I'll try my best to check back here soon with some photos for all.

Incredible headaches

I am guess this latest crazy behavior is from the Healy side. Mark has not shared with me that he did this as a child, perhaps Paul did, who knows. What I do know is that Uncle Brendan created headaches for himself and Maeve is following suit.

In efforts to express frustration as well as gain attention, Maeve has taken to slamming her head into things. Mostly her crib bars and occasionally the floor. It's horrible to watch and even worse to see the evidence of her actions displayed across her forehead like little hematoma islands. Sometimes she will hit her head so hard that she will grab her forehead and whimper from pain. I can't imagine this is good for her, especially in light of her recent concussion, but what am I to do. I'm going with Dr O'Hern's advice, the Healy kid family doc, "let him do it, his head is hard and eventually he will stop."

I'm praying my child has enough sense to figure out that she has control over this pain and will stop. Until then, I will stare at her forehead and try to make out an image from her Rorschach blood-blots.

NO, no, NO, no

Despite our best efforts to avoid this word, it has seeped in. Over the weekend Maeve mastered the word 'no.' I know my dad is laughing right now, and I'm sure he is partly to blame for it. Just wait until she is at a sleep over with you and tells you no to something. Then who will be laughing...he, he, he.

The word no. SO filled with power. She does not always use it when you would expect, but she uses it frequently. For instance, jumping on our neighbor's bed with a stuffed Simba lion, she kept telling Simba, "no, NO, no, no, no." I'm was right there and didn't see Simba making any obvious offenses, but apparently there are things that I can not see.

She often uses it exactly as she has heard it as well. Silas: "no, Maze (Maeve), no." Maeve: "no, Maze, no." We hear her telling herself this a few times a day. Not sure if she is really making some internal corrections or not with this, but it's amusing the less.

Well, now that it is here, I'm sure it's going to stay. Mark and I will continue to use the word sparingly and for times that it is really needed (read: danger). Hoping with little attention it will loose it's spark and die out like a flame.