March 2011

Life has been the busiest ever with my mother being gone, Aaron quitting his naps, and Kira not sleeping for more than 40 minutes at a time. It's been busy, but good. And yet I can't fathom how in the world my mother did it without a washer/dryer, quick frozen meals, disposable diapers, in one bedroom, with little money, etc...I think I never appreciated her more than I do now, having two little ones of my own. Parenthood is not easy, and it's not supposed to be easy. But it's rewarding, it's supposed to be so. Every night I go down and I thank the Lord for these two precious children that He has given us. And I thank Him for an amazing husband. My and my children's world would be a different place without Cliff in it. My heart rejoices when I see our little Aaron diving for the door when he hears the keys turning at around 6 pm, or when I hear him say how much he loves Cliff, or when he doesn't want Cliff to leave for work. Kira is still too little to understand all this, but I am sure when the time comes, the seed of love that Cliff is sowing into her right now, will grow 10 times more, just like it did with Aaron.
Aaron is still very interested in human body anatomy and physiology. He's learning to read in both languages, do simple math, and he loves to sing:)For some reason, he feels inspired to sing right when I am upstairs putting Kira down. He found a way to overcome his fears of mannequins by making one with a towel and his small clothes and goggles,and befriending it. Quite clever but creepy. I don't know why I haven't taken a picture of this new friend yet. Nonetheless he got into a habit of walking into our bedroom in the middle of the night, without making a sound climbing into our bed and falling asleep there like it's nobody's business. And since I am up with Kira anyways, I let him do so, and then gently carry him back to his bed.
The night when Cliff was gone driving my mother to NY, I had to put both of them down for the night (how do single mothers survive???). As I was giving Aaron a bath, he put his arms around my neck, squeezed hard and said: "Mama, I love you so very much" Before he falls asleep he likes me to read "ABC God Loves Me" book given him by our friend Katya, have me rub his back with a rhyme, and sing two Russian songs (Pesenka mamontenka, God's Design) I can't skip any of the elements of this routine, he knows it by heart:)

I discovered Play-Doh website with project ideas for beginners and today Aaron and I made a couple from there. He really enjoyed making things though I was helping him quite a bit.

Also, thanks to Serg and Jules we now have some good pre-school workbooks from School Zone. Pretty good stuff, I'd recommend to those who have pre-schoolers. I could use some ideas as far as craft projects or art.

Kira is almost 4 months, and I'll post about her after her Dr.'s visit. She's a beautiful child, inside out.