The Three

We had homemade chicken noodle soup tonight for dinner - made possible, in part, by 30 minutes of concurrent iPad time for the three. This sounds simple enough, but if there is one thing I'm known for in these parts, it's my stingy-ness on the screen time.

We recently solved two rather annoying issues with a single chart. Issue 1: constant requests for iPad time, which I say no to 99.9% of the time. Issue 2: dinnertime manners. Or more specifically, the sudden absence of them. Thus, they can now earn an X by their name on the whiteboard for appropriate manners during dinner. And five Xs equals 30 minutes of screen time. Woe to the child who asks for screen time before he or she has the required Xs! Tonight was the first payoff of the chart. I liked that they earned the privilege. Mike liked that they were quiet. They liked their screens. Everybody won.

This is F's "I'm almost out
of smiles" smile

Fiona told us tonight that she told a friend in YMCA after care (the big sister of one of her classmates) about her scars, her surgeries, and her button. This is the first time she has willingly shared her story with a friend. She said that she was nervous at first, but was glad at the end that she had shared. And you know what, that friend had had a surgery too! It was a great step for her to start to navigate how and what - and with whom - she wants to share. We are so glad it was a positive first experience. And ironically, Mike just leaned over and showed me that it is World Spina Bifida + Hydrocephalus Day. Even cooler.

Sweet Quinn is generally not a fan of dogs - except Yogi. Terrified and petrified are two words that come to mind. Our neighbors who walk the girls to the bus each morning have a sweet, yet hyper dog named Basil. Quinn and Basil are not BFFs. Ms. Katie has been nice enough to put Basil in a bedroom or outside for the few minutes before they go to the bus. But Basil's presence often makes Q choose not to go over and play on the weekends. This week, she has decided that she is willing to try co-existing with Basil and is doing a great job. We are all so proud of her and Bugs, Ev, and Jonah have been so kind and encouraging.

Dec has settled in beautifully at preschool. The group of kids there is perfect for him and he seems to be effortlessly making friends. He's just his goofy self and they love him for that. We are also thrilled that the boy finally has some friends his own age! His imaginative play has skyrocketed and it is the most fun to listen to the games he makes up. A few nights ago, I found him with several of his sisters' Barbies out and Spiderman was alternately saving them and "hamming" them with a hammer. We've found that Spiderman is a bit unreliable in his heroics!

Speaking of accomplishing two things in one action, you have an update on the three and I got to share the fun group photos from our family picture adventure. Again, everybody wins!