School, Grandparents and Vacation

The kids keep progressing. Isaac wears his glasses fine at home but rebels against them in school. It takes some evening and morning reminding to help in wearing them longer in school. He’s thrown them across the class too and popped out a screw, which caused a lens to come undone. We weren’t too happy about that and he understood how upset we were. On nights and weekends he keeps them on at all times and knows how to put them on and adjust when necessary. Now that we’re on vacation for two weeks we have the opportunity to drill it in him how important it is to wear them at all times and so far it seems to be helping.

Isabella has had a few bad days at pre-K. She’s thrown dirt at others, ran away from teachers (out of the classroom) and has also spit at them. Throwing dirt and spitting are things we’ve seen her do at the orphanage and we thought she had outgrown them but somehow she started again. She thinks it’s great fun and has a distinct laugh when being mischievous (think Beavis and Butthead…she has the Beavis laugh!). We keep reminding her that such things are unacceptable and she seems to do better when reminded frequently. As to running away, that’s quite new but once again she thinks it’s fun. Hopefully the nightly talks before bedtime will help dispel the myth that such things are “fun”.

Isabella used to cry at bed time, ALL the time. She’d call for mama and if Lori stood by her for a while and then left to go to bed herself, she’d cry for her anyway, yell, then rock her head and cry herself to sleep. So recently I started to sit and talk to her before going to bed, telling her not to cry and that mama and papa will be here in the morning, encouraging her that she doesn’t need to cry because she’s a big girl (Lori doesn’t like that comment. I think it helps instill self-esteem…but what do I know?!). So far it’s been working and she seems to have snapped out of it. In fact this week we’re in South Padre island and mama isn’t with us (she couldn’t make it due to work) but she has been going to bed without the usual fuss.

Grandma Rose and Grandpa Joe arrived last Thursday afternoon. I picked them up at the airport and then we drove home to unload and wait for Lori to come home with the kiddos after picking them up from pre-K. The twins were happy to see them, even though they probably had no clue who they were! I kept telling them that these were my mama and papa and they stared at me in bewilderment. It was kinda funny and Isabella has learned to call them “grandpa” and “grandma”. Isaac finds it easier to call them using the Maltese version “nanna” and “nannu”, although mom noticed him mumbling “grandpa” quite clearly a couple of times. Obviously he won’t repeat when asked and starts laughing. They got plenty of gifts from family back in Malta and they still haven’t opened them all as we’re trying to release them slowly.

Later on Thursday we went to the Cheesecake factory for a quick bite. My parents had a “small” burger and we obviously took photos while they opened their mouths to get their first bites of American bounty.

  

Isabella sat between them and kept blowing kisses. They really didn’t complain…

On Saturday Isaac was helping my mom to fold the sheets. He’s now sleeping in his sister’s bedroom on the trundle bed while my parents use his bedroom with the full-size mattress and other trundle if needed. Isabella actually loves to use the lower bed and lets her brother sleep on the higher side. They giggle away for a long time and takes them longer to sleep.

As I said earlier, we’re spending the week in South Padre island at the company condo. It’s been 2 years since our last visit and we love it here at the end of September/beginning of October. The weather is still nice and warm (it’s actually quite hot) and very quiet around here. We have met with the x-president of the firm I work for and his family. The twins have finally socialized and played with their kids today at the pool. The surf was a bit rough so we skipped the beach and headed for the pool, where they loved jumping in the cool, clear water. We plan on taking them on a dolphin-watch trip and more swimming of course in the coming days. They’ve been eating a lot and now have a nice tan. I’m just having too much fun and keep reminding myself that I need to stop and take some photos and videos!