casey&alicia » penelope jane

I can do it myself, Mama.

caseyandalicia — Sat, 04 Sep 2010 15:14:15 +0000

Penelope has an excellent sense of style…

A special flare for putting on shoes dramatically…

A definite preference for t-shirts that feature an animal…

And a palpable sense of pride when she finishes…

It takes a village.

caseyandalicia — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 00:32:24 +0000

Penelope is an excellent helper. She is especially enthusiastic about getting Arthur ready in the morning, and keeping him diapered and clean throughout the day. Our routine is pretty simple: I toss Arthur’s outfit on the floor, and then go grab a diaper. She gets right to work unsnapping things. If I take too long, she starts undressing him.

If at any time in the day he spits up, drools, or gets food on his face/clothes, she fetches a cloth napkin or dish cloth straight away. Usually saying “Uh-oh Arthur.. it’s okay,” as she runs. Her intonation is hilarious– she acts as if he shares her concern, and might be upset by his own mess.

It’s a fairly ideal setup. She loves on her little brother, I have a silly helper, and he beams with pride at any attention she pays him.

Love these kids.

Penelope, honey, that’s not a smile.

caseyandalicia — Sun, 29 Aug 2010 23:14:09 +0000

But we can all see that you are trying REALLY hard. Maybe next time you’ll get it?

For love of tractors

caseyandalicia — Sun, 29 Aug 2010 00:52:12 +0000

Take a look, it’s in a book.

caseyandalicia — Mon, 09 Aug 2010 02:51:57 +0000

Casey wanted a few pictures of Penelope since she can’t visit him and it’s been a few days. So here’s story time with our sweet girl..

That last one is my favorite. She’s saying “triangle.”

See Penelope.

caseyandalicia — Sat, 24 Jul 2010 00:19:18 +0000

See Penelope push the stroller.

See Penelope pose.

See Penelope paralyzed with fear.

See Penelope follow a dog.

See Penelope become a dog.

{The End}

Daddy’s girl

caseyandalicia — Sat, 17 Jul 2010 01:08:18 +0000

We spent a lovely morning at the zoo, and Miss Penelope just couldn’t get enough daddy-cuddles. She is so glad he’s home. What a sweet girl.

She was almost equally enamored with the gorillas. Not that I’m drawing a correlation or anything. Because I’m not.

And finally, here’s a way too long for anyone but grandparents video of the Bear:

Strange child.

caseyandalicia — Wed, 14 Jul 2010 03:38:38 +0000

So Penelope goes through phases, like any other kid, I’m sure.

The strange part is the object of her obsession. She loves letters, like I imagine other kids love stuffed animals or dolls. It isn’t unusual for her to ask to sleep with a favorite letter (how do you even do that?), or beg us to scribble one out on a scrap of paper in the car. Oh, and if she ever runs up to you, MagnaDoodle in hand, and screams a letter with a smile on her face… it’s her way of asking you to draw one, please.

I’m hoping it’s a toddler quirk, and not some Rain Man freak show. I guess if it is, we’ll have to sign her up for Wheel of Fortune and enjoy the bounty of her victory.

But I guess that’s a few years down the road.

As I was saying. The kid picks a favorite letter and the obsession sticks around for weeks.

First the letter S was her favorite, now it is definitely the letter M. Imagine her delight when I used M&M’s as bribery during potty-training. We’re not big McDonald’s patrons, so I’m pretty sure she isn’t cheering for their food when she happily points out each one we ever drive by. Ever. One favorite feature of the letter M is that if you happen to encounter a letter W, all you have to do is crane your neck around, and suddenly, an M appears. Just ask Penelope. Or rather, observe her. Any Walgreens, Footwear shop, or website (www.) billboard will do.

Recently she learned how to draw an M (“Up, down, up, down,” she says)… so basically, her joy knows no end.

And really, it is blissful joy. Just look at her face..

Jump for joy.

caseyandalicia — Tue, 29 Jun 2010 01:08:05 +0000

This weekend seemed an appropriate time to dust off the old excersaucer because I don’t have enough ridiculously large and obtrusive baby items in my little living room because Arthur just loves being on his feet. I failed to anticipate, however, the joy that this old baby toy would bring to Penelope. I know, I know, I should’ve seen it coming. Can I be honest with you? She spent about an hour in the thing.

No kidding.

I kept facing this inner battle…

“This is really passive parenting, carrying on while she is stuck in that hunk of plastic.”

“No, you’re allowing her to get it out of her system, so that when Arthur uses it she won’t pay any attention, or be jealous. Yeah, see, this is smart!”

“Is it even safe in there? She’s way too big…”

“Enjoy this, she’ll be over it and into trouble before you know it..”

It’s kind of that same dilemma when a baby is oversleeping. Do you wake them when it’s time to eat? Time to start the day? Oh the mystery.

I’m thinking really deep thoughts today, in case you couldn’t tell.

Without further ado..

and this? this was yesterday. right? right? right? just yesterday? right?

{assuming the fetal position now}

Yes, I am that mom.

caseyandalicia — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 01:33:54 +0000

My life is perfect.

Every day, I get up an hour before my kids to read the bible and exercise. My house is always clean, and always smells of freshly-baked bread. That’s because I make all of our meals from scratch, using fresh and organic ingredients. Penelope never disobeys. And my baby? He never cries. Casey and I always get along. I have never, ever yelled at him. Or my babies, for that matter. I am never behind on laundry. Each night I read or craft instead of watching television. I look amazing when Casey gets home from work, and dinner is always ready on time.

I am never overwhelmed.

But you see, I have this friend. She tells me the craziest stories. I can hardly believe them, being that I’m so put together and all.

Here’s one of her favorites:

She hears her fusspot of a little boy crying in his bed. Well, in her bed actually, since he doesn’t have a bed yet. But that’s neither here nor there.

So she hears him crying, and sees that her little girl is happy and occupied with a few books.

My friend sneaks into the next room to comfort her crying baby. He’s been crying a lot lately, so this is hardly unusual. After not more than a couple of minutes, she emerges from the room. She doesn’t remember what she noticed first– her daughter no longer sitting on the couch, or the distinctive snap-crackle-pop of a crunch coming from underfoot.

She looks down to notice a small sprinkling of Rice Krispies.

“Hmm. That’s strange. Nobody ate cereal today.”

Around the corner she discovered her mischevious toddler sitting on the ground, mashing handfulls of cereal into her mouth, straight from the bag.

“Hi Mama! Mmmmmm, cereal!”

Then she explored further, and found that e v e r y s q u a r e i n c h of her apartment was covered with a fine layer of cereal. More cereal than she’d imagine could fit in just one box.

Can you believe my friend?!