March 2007

March has been a month filled with preparation for our new family member. Becky has gone into full nesting mode and we've cleaned out the entire house, done some yard work, and fixed up our cars.

Actually our cars were the source of a major change in our family. Becky's Jetta is too small to fit an infant car seat behind the driver comfortably, so we decided to go car shopping. After we picked one out and had begun negotiating with dealerships, we decided it made more sense for us to just switch cars instead. The Accord will become the family car and the Jetta will be used by whomever doesn't have Blake (which will usually be me). So far this arrangement is working out fine as using a stick in traffic isn't as awful as I thought it would be and the Accord has given Becky the room she needs (we've already got Blake's car seat installed).

Kyla is also doing her part to get ready. We all went to a class for toddlers who are expecting younger siblings. The instructor simulated a live birth with a mommy doll and an emerging baby doll, she even simulated the birthing mother's breathing and grunting noises for effect. This was probably for the benefit of those children who are going to be present at their sibling's birth, which we never seriously considered (and I thought by not lying about the stork we would avoid being old fashioned, but this class was in Seattle). Then Kyla held a real baby for the first time and watched his diaper get changed. Fortunately she didn't ask any questions about his anatomy. Finally we watched a slideshow about a girl who goes through the process of becoming a big sister that included an uncensored picture of the mother giving birth. After the class Kyla declared, "That baby coming out of the mommy's tummy wasn't the right color" (if you've never seen a live birth before, babies usually emerge with a bluish-purple color).

I find the details she that picks up on to be very amusing. With Easter coming she had a very interesting question for Becky, "Is the Easter Bunny a boy or a girl?" Becky told her she didn't know and that she never really thought about it (I generally think of him as a boy, but he is often depicted in feminine clothing), to which Kyla replied, "you should ask the other mommies," a very practical idea.

Kyla is constantly learning to do new things on her own. We all went to the park on a nice day and she was able to climb ladders, go down steep slides, and just play like a kid without a parent hovering over her. Becky got her a new 24 piece puzzle and she was able to put it together mainly on her own; I only had to answer questions and give little hints. Not having our help to do things has its disadvantages too, she hates socks and insists on putting her shoes on the wrong feet, which has led to a number of blisters.

We've started to teach her to tell time. In the mornings Kyla usually gets up and has breakfast with me, and is eager to wake Becky up who sleeps in (and deservedly so since she is constantly being woken up by kicks and Braxton-Hicks contractions). She knows that she has to wait until the big hand on the clock is on the "3" (8:15) before running upstairs and jumping on the bed.

Since this is the month of St. Patrick's Day it seems appropriate to mention that Kyla's favorite color is green. She wanted her new bedroom painted green and favors that color when it comes to all sorts of things from her straws to the noodle she uses in swim class. Neither Becky or I are really sure where this preference came from, but doesn't everyone have a favorite color?

Lexie was in another production, this time a musical of Disney's Beauty and the Beast. We were assuming that Kyla wouldn't make it through the entire three hours, but to our surprise she watched the whole show and really loved it (it was really impressive for a high school production). For days afterwards she asked us to tell her the story of Belle when we were putting her to sleep.

We went to the Grossology exhibit at the Pacific Science Center with the Neels, and afterwards we went to the Old Spaghetti Factory for dinner. The OSF has a highly decorative toilet in the women's restroom (so I'm told), which apparently intrigued Kyla enough to use it. Thus far she hasn't been too interested in using the potty despite our efforts to encourage it. We're hoping she'll eventually motivate herself when she sees that her buddies have ditched their diapers since she seems to have inherited her parents' competitiveness.

Now we are looking towards April, which we sincerely hope concludes with Blake's birth and makes this the last monthly update post for our three member family. But considering Kyla was induced a week late, I won't get my hopes up too high.