Happy Birthday, Baby Daniel!

We are very excited to welcome Mika and Allison's cousin, Daniel Parker Gallagher, to the world. Baby Daniel, Mommy Beth, and Daddy Mike are all doing well.

Jason took the day off work on Friday so that he could rush to the hospital as soon as Daniel was born. We loaded up the girls and took them to Babies R Us and Toys R Us to pick out gifts for Daniel. They settled on a blue plush monkey rattle and a BIG stuffed dog a la Uncle Brian.

Mika really knows how to shop. Her arms were full with toys for Daniel and herself, then she started to pile me up with stuff. Fortunately, she was agreeable to putting most of it back. Allison found a play-doh kitchen set and said "ple-ease" in the most adorable voice that I just couldn't refuse.

We finally got the call we'd been waiting for at 7:30 pm and Jason rushed out the door to greet Baby Daniel.

I put the girls to bed, grabbed a basket of laundry, and headed down to the basement. I was putting clothes in the washer when I hurd a thud from above. I didn't need to wait for the screams before I knew what had happened. I ran up the two sets of stairs to find Allison at her bedroom door, screaming and crying.

"I FALL! I FALL ON THE RUG! I FALL ON MY HEEAADDD!!!"

Although the girls have been jumping in their cribs and leaning on the railings for a while, this was the first fall. Allison calmed down after a few minutes in the rocking chair. Her head had only a small lump so I put her back in her crib and said good night. Both girls laid right down with no interest in jumping.

I made a couple quick calls to Jason and my Dad, both of whom felt I should keep Allison awake in case of consussion. So into the room I went again, about 10 minutes later. Mika looked at me as I took Allison out of the room but put her head right back down and went to sleep. It was 9:00 by now, an hour past bedtime. The poor kids were so tired.

I think putting Allison down for 10 minutes then coming back was the best route I could have taken. Had I taken Allison out of the room immediately, Mika would have screamed bloody murder until she got to come downstairs too. Giving her time to settle down and start to fall asleep worked like a charm. We'll just pretend that was my intention all along.

So Allison got some late evening alone time with Mommy. I can't say that I really minded. It's so rare that I get to spend time with either of them one-on-one. We cuddled on the couch and watched an episode of Word World.

I hopped online and found out that the no-sleep-for-a-concussion thing is a myth. Turns out that it all stems from the fact that you need to monitor the patient and make sure that they're alert, responsive, and easy to wake. But like most other ailments, sleep really is good medicine. I guess somewhere along the telephone game of medical myths, "make sure the patient is easy to wake" got turned into "don't let the patient sleep." If you do fall asleep with a concussion, chances are very slim that you'd fall into a coma, and definitely not a permanent coma. So now we all know. Let's stop spreading this falsehood, eh?

I checked Allison's eyes for signs of uneven dilation and kept her talking about our day, the fall, all kinds of stuff, to check for lapses in memory and slurred speech (all signs of a concussion). She was perfectly alert and happy the whole time. Except she refused to keep the ice on her head. She hates that stuff. Nothing unusual there.

When I put her down for the third time, I told her that I'd check on her later. She was happy to see her crib and laid right down. I did go in around 3:00 am and wake her. She was slow to wake, but who isn't at that time? She seemed fine and we both went back to sleep, finally.

--Kaylee

Mika's Big Day

Growth can usually only be seen when looking back over a longish stretch of time. But occasionally it presents itself in-progress so that you can see the child changing and evolving right at that moment. Friday, July 18 was such a day for Mika.

The day started ordinarily enough. It was my Friday off (generally referred to around here as a "Mama Day") and we ate breakfast and went immediately to the park before it got too hot. Both girls headed straight to the swings. This in itself is a bit unusual, as Allison generally avoids the swings or only swings for about 30 seconds before toddling off to the jungle gym to play independently while I push Mika. But today for the first time EVER, Allison wanted to swing longer than Mika did.

While swinging, Mika had spotted a girl playing alone; her mom was reading on a bench nearby. Mika decided she wanted to go play with this little girl and told me she was all done swinging. I pulled her out of the swing and set her on the ground. She grabbed my hand and tried to lead me over to the little girl. I explained that I had to keep pushing Allison and that she should go over there on her own.

Mika was torn. Allison was used to entertaining herself while I pushed Mika on the swings, but Mika had never experienced the same. She was certainly accustomed to me dividing my time between the two of them if they didn't want to play on the same toy. But I'd never told her to go play independently at the park.

She stayed near my legs for a couple of minutes, watching the little girl run from toy to toy. Finally she summoned the courage (I actually saw her take a deep breath -- so cute!) and walked up to the girl.

I heard her say, "Hi, I'm Mika." The girl introduced herself as Crystal. Crystal was quite a bit older (I found out from her mom later that she's six) but she was open to playing with my two-year-old Mika. She patiently showed Mika how to correctly hold the two-person rocking airplane they were on. Mika and Crystal were inseperable until Crystal's mom decided it was time to go home. I was so proud of Mika, making a friend all on her own.

When we got home, we had a snack then went upstairs. I explained to the girls that the time had come for them to start napping in the same room. Up until now, Mika had slept in a Pack'N'Play in the office. I've been suggesting the idea for months so it wasn't a sudden move at all. I was still surprised though by how receptive they were to the idea. They helped me dismantle and put away the Pack'N'Play and said "bye, bye" to it. I didn't expect them to nap at all that day, nor for several days after. Much to my surprise, they settled right down and went to sleep. I didn't hear a peep. They even slept longer than usual!

When Jason got home we discovered that there wasn't much in the way of dinner fixins in the pantry. I spotted a couple near-black bananas and decided it would be a breakfast-for-dinner night: we'd have banana pancakes and sausages.

Jason took the girls out back so I could cook in peace but Mika didn't want to stay outside for long (the mosquitos love her). Figuring it'd be better to involve her in cooking than plop her in front of the TV, I gave her super-special permission to stand on a chair at the kitchen counter. This was the first time I'd tried to have either of the girls cook with me and wasn't sure how it would go.

Mika turned out to be a fantastic assistant chef. She helped me measure and pour ingredients, then stir it up with her own special spoon. She was very attentive and well-behaved. About this time Allison came inside and joined us. They were both fascinated by the pancakes on the griddle and kept poking the pancakes with their spoons. Jason put Jack Johnson's "Banana Pancakes" on the stereo and the twins danced in their chairs.

Finally, the pancakes were done. Both girls were very excited to climb into their highchairs for dinner. When Mika's plate was put in front of her though, she burst into tears. She didn't want to eat her creation! When she saw Jason and Allison devouring their pancakes (I was in the kitchen still working on the next batch) she reluctantly took a bite. "Delicous!" she exclaimed and soon cleared her plate.

Mika showed courage in making her new friend, flexibility in changing her nap routine, and the ability to follow directions and engage in grown-up activities when making pancakes. I couldn't be more proud of her.

And speaking of pride, here's a photo of Mika from a couple months ago, looking pretty darn proud of herself. She's quite the climber; have I mentioned that?

Just a Couple of Cute Pictures

Allison

Mika

The Story Behind the Scar

My dad's cousin Betsy and her son Thomas were driving through town so we arranged a family brunch at a local restaurant. My parents (Mom-Mom and Gad to the twins), Uncle Brian, Aunt Kathleen, and my cousin Allison were all there. Jason couldn't make it since he had to teach that afternoon.

All was well until the food arrived. In their infinite wisdom, the cook or the waitress (I don't know which) put a piping hot pitcher of syrup on Allison's plate of french toast. (Note that this was a KIDS MEAL that I had ordered, not an adult plate of french toast.) Being the typical two-year-old, she immediately grabbed it and tried to drink it. As she tilted it back in preparation for a nice long sip, the syrup spilled down her arm and the screaming ensued.

I went into zen mode. Knowing that Allison would never calm down if I started screaming at the waitstaff and manager, I instantly forgave them all. My family was baffled but followed my lead. Allison was calmly eating french toast and fruit within five minutes.

I'm still not mad, even a month after I write this. (This all happened on July 12 but I'm writing on August 11.) I know it was a mistake. The waitress was just a high school kid. It was Saturday brunch in a diner, and the place was hopping. As a former waitress myself, I know just how crazy it can get. She was trying to distribute huge amounts of food (3 waitresses helped her carry it all out; I have no idea which one put the plate in front of Allison) to this rowdy group of 10 as quickly as possible so she could get to the next task. She was probably thinking three steps ahead just like I used to. Grab the plates and go, go, go.

I did pull the waitress aside near the end of the meal and told her that I wasn't mad, that Allison would be fine, but that she should never, ever, EVER do that again. She assured me that she had learned her lesson and I believe that she did. That's all I need.

Yes, it was negligence. But would it have helped to make a scene? To scream at the manager and possibly get this girl fired? Allison would still be burned and my heart would be full of anger. I chose peace instead. Allison's burn was very red and developed a couple small blisters. Possibly she will have a scar forever but it's already fading fast. At the very least, we now have a surefire way to tell these twins apart!!

Which reminds me of a funny moment during brunch. My cousin Allison arrived late and sat down at the end of the table. Uncle Brian challenged her to guess which twin was which. After only a moment's hesitation, she called down the table, "Mika!" and waited to see which girl responded. A simple solution, but no one had tried it yet on the girls. Most people just make a random guess, figuring they have a 50:50 chance of being right. Allison, as usual, just went straight for Occum's Razor. She's so clever.

After all the excitement, it was no surprise when the girls fell asleep on the way home. Which of course meant no nap that afternoon. Which was really a bummer because we had a late night planned. It was Jocelyn's surprise birthday dinner, about an hour south of us. The dinner was at six, meaning we didn't get home until around 10:00 that night. That's by far the latest that the girls have ever been up, let alone without a nap.

But they're extroverts and draw their energy from crowds. The twins had a blast and were their usual social selves. We managed to get out of there before the birthday cake was cut so that a sugar high didn't keep them up until midnight. They slept until 8:30 am the next morning, which was soooo nice for Jason and I. It's so sad that 8:30 (heck, 7:30) feels like sleeping in now.

Mika and Allison and the Tale of the Underwater Dragon

After lunch today Mika asked me "Read a book, Mama?" I agreed and she grabbed my hand and led me from the kitchen to the foyer.

"Sit on the ground," she ordered, pointing toward the rug. It was about this time that I noticed she wasn't carrying a book and had led me to an area well away from the bookshelf.

"But don't we need to choose a book?" I asked. "Sit here on ground," was her insistent reply.

So I sat.

She immediately turned around and plopped herself down in my lap, thrusting into my hands the two puzzle pieces she had been carrying. The pictures faced away from us.

"Read this," she said, indicating the blank puzzle pieces staring up at us. She leaned back against my chest, clearly settling in for a nice long sit.

So I read.

Robots, Babies and Monkeys

So now the girls' imaginations are really starting to shine. They like to pretend that they are either robots, babies or monkeys. Allison prefers being a robot. When she is "Robot Allison" you must address her as such in a monotone, robot voice. Everything she has is a robot this or a robot that (even Daddy turns into "Robot Daddy"). She has a shirt with a frog in a hula skirt. When I asked her what she wanted to wear one morning, she replied, "robot hula frog". Mika, on the other hand, likes to be a baby, and will insist that Mama carry her upstairs at bedtime cradled in her arms. Both of them have toy baby bottles which they will carry around and "drink" from. I think that they are excited that their cousin Daniel is on the way! They turn into "two little monkeys" when they are on a bed, and must jump and play accordingly. We just hope they don't fall down and bump their heads.

Recently, Allison claimed that she was a robot monkey! Now we're really in trouble...


Unrelated, here is a link with some twin shenanigans. Enjoy!