strange weekend

Julia and Libi spent this weekend at my parents' house in Westchester, NY. They told me they had a lot of fun so far. We still have to pick them up somewhere on the NJ TPK this afternoon. Josh dropped them off on Friday at Exit 9. He did a quick and simple exchange with my mom (or at least it was supposed to be quick & simple). They had Shabbat dinner, went swimming, visited Manor Park, ate sushi on Saturday night, and had lunch with David & Natalie on Sunday in Brooklyn. Unfortunately, Ari had foot & mouth disease this weekend, so they couldn't spend time with him. I definitely hope to repeat these types of visits!!

Here at home it was both strange and very normal. We had a quiet family dinner on Friday night---too quiet. On Saturday, Josh went to shul alone while I dragged Marigold to the babysitting at my gym. Usually we all go to shul, but I took a break this week. Then we all went to the pool in the afternoon. That was the beginning of the very strange feelings! Josh and I both went with Marigold to the baby pool. She asked first if I would be with her and I said yes. Then I said Dad would be there too. And she paused and repeated this information like she couldn't believe it. It was like, "I get both of my parents at the same time??" Poor little third child...We left the pool after an hour with a downpour of rain that ended as quickly as it began. We then spent the evening in Manayunk. This weeked they had a Craft Fair/Artists Bazaar. This was a surprise to us!! Josh started to get stressed out (it's a habit) when we discovered the Fair, probably because he was thinking of all the hassles we'd have to go thru for parking, and walking around, and finding somewhere to eat...But another surprise came our way! There was absolutely no hassle. We found parking easily. Marigold was happy to be in her stroller, and the Thai place we had dinner was lovely. This would NEVER have happened with all 3 children with us!! It almost felt like a date. At the same time I missed Julia and Libi like crazy and I was constantly thinking of them and what they were doing at that moment.
So I think it was a great weekend all around--a treat for Julia & Libi to be with their grandparents, and a treat for Josh and I from the frantic pace of life with 3 children.

Saying Goodbye to Paci

Marigold is beginning the process of saying goodbye to her pacifier--although she doesn't know it yet. Two days ago Josh and I agreed on new rules for the paci: She will only be allowed to have paci's in her crib. If she asks for the paci during the day she can go into her crib for as long as she likes, but she can't walk around with the paci in her mouth. It's amazing! 2 days later she has only asked for it a couple of times. She stands up in her crib, sucks for a couple of seconds and then she's ready to get out! Sometimes she'll absent-mindedly put my fingers into her mouth (a sad replacement for her paci), but she laughs when she realizes what she's done.
Now all we have to do is potty-training and moving to a big girl bed!