There is no place like Gymboree...There is no place like Gymboree...

There is no place like Gymboree...

If I click my heals while doing this do you think Lily will still be able to fit in their clothes? I know, I know, she's growing up. Last night we had a much overdue girl's night out. We had haircuts, well, I had a haircut. Somehow we had the times wrong again (this is the third or fourth time we've had the day or time wrong). This seems odd to me being that I don't have this problem anywhere else. Don't get me wrong, I love my hairdresser and so do my little people, it just seems like if I only have this issue there than maybe the issue isn't mine... Ok so I could totally screw it up, but after that first mix up I have been extra careful to listen very closely and write it all down right away. Totally off on a tangent there, sorry. Reeling it back in...

Lily and I have different tastes. This wasn't always the case. I remember beautiful days of matching dresses and hats. Wonderful little ensembles that screamed "cute little girl". Even now, we still both like Gymboree, but alas, she no longer fits. We stopped into GapKids, it is at least a good middle ground at the moment. We did Children's Place, she can do that for a few more months, maybe. We did find some Easter hopefuls there. We went into Icing and Claire's. We are talking about ear piercing. This is fine. We ventured for the first time into Aeropostle and she eyed American Eagle. The clothes here were cute, but oh My Lily, she is not built like that. She is not 7 feet tall and toothpick thin. I honestly don't even understand the sizing. I felt overwhelmed, and totally uncool. I so wanted to curl into the fetal position in the corner of Gymboree, you know where ~ under the clearance rack, where you can hear the singing on the TV, but you can't push a stroller through. The thought of sending her out with friends of mine that have older girls crossed my mind, the thought of how much I'd love to have another baby girl to dress crossed my mind too!

I'll be honest, I was relieved when we left the mall. It was then, in the car, that it hit me. She was talking, it was interesting, we were relating on a pretty grown up level. She thinks deeply, we're gonna have some good talks! She's not my baby . I can't stick a cute hat on her head and watch her do party tricks that amaze the grown ups. She's gonna wear her hair in ways that make me shake my head, she's going to like lots of things I don't. I will be out of my comfort zone in many shoe stores of the future (pumas...really? are they still around or back or what? made me laugh). I may not get spending money I don't have on accessories (ok, so if someone would accessorize me and give me a fund for this I might change my mind). I will never and I mean never respond to the following statement "Man, I wish I could find some black nail polish" (uttered last night at Claire's) with anything other than a slight gag and and "Oh, God, please no! (not that I have any prejudice against people wearing black nail polish I just think it's hideously unattractive, ok, and the idea of Lily "going goth" has been my biggest fashion fear since I put her in her first smocked, frilly, pink dress)]

Bottom line, the '80s are back, we are totally loving discussing it in depth even if she's more Cyndi Lauper and I'm more Debbie Gibson. Let's be honest, Cyndi Lauper was cooler anyway!

While we're talking about growing up...

This may be a little too much information (for my txt readers TMI), let me set the stage for Dax's usually #2 potty routine.

• Jump wildly around the house
• after several minutes of this start yelling "I have to poop!!"
• find nearest older person, demand they come with you because "I can't poop by myself!!"
• Have said older person, while lecturing about you being almost 4, attach potty seat and lift you onto it.
• Have deep conversation for a good 15 minutes with older family member that you've imprisoned in the bathroom.
• Insist on help dismounting, stand teepee style with hands and feet on ground, booty in air so potty slave can wipe your cute little behind.
• Wash hands after questioning "why, when I didn't touch my bottom?"
• Go back to playing

Today I was having "God time" (this tends to be when pooping is best) when the jumping and yelling began. I simply asked (like I do every day) if he could go put the potty seat on. He said yes... I asked if he could use the stool to get himself up. He said he'd try it... He sat in there, alone!! When the yell came that he was done I greatly praised him. I asked to try to wipe himself. He said ok! He took the seat off and put it away. He then washed his hands with a smile on his face after only one prompting that he did, in fact, touch his bottom.

Miraculous!! It's amazing how the things that excite you change when you have small people! I was so proud of my guy! First thing he said to Lily when she walked in the door was "I pooped all by myself! Are you proud of me??" She clapped, she gave hi-5s, she was genuinely proud, well, that and totally relieved that she may get a reprieve from her prison time in stinko penitentiary!

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In another room(aren't you glad?), later this same day, another kind of growing up occurred.

I bumped Dax in the kitchen, I apologized. He didn't say anything at that moment, but when I left the room he followed.

"Mom, I really didn't like you when you bumped me. It made me not like you. I wanted to say mean words like hate, stupid, or blah blah blah."

He didn't. He didn't say mean words, he didn't yell. He processed that that was how he wanted to react but instead shared his thoughts with me in a very grown up way. I smiled. I told him it was ok to feel that way but the fact that he knew not to act that way made me feel very proud. He grinned from ear to ear and told me "I just really love you, Mom".

I may be missing my babies, but boy I'm loving the big people they are getting to be!

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Just so you don't get carried away, thinking my house is now some sort of utopia, Dax did pour honey all over Finn's head this morning...