What's In A Name: IPA

Let's start at the very beginning, shall we.

Eight years ago this month Joe and I decided to get a puppy.  One day we talked about how we liked the idea of getting a puppy.  And a week later Joe and one of his buddies had found a breeder with a dog expecting a litter anytime (March 16th or 17th is IPA's birthday...but I'll save the story about the confusion over her exact birth day for another time). By early May we were driving to Northern Minnesota to select a 6-week old puppy out of the litter to bring home as our pet. 

Here she is!  All tiny and cute and nippy and scratchy.  She's always had just a little of a slightly pointy bump on the top of her head, ears either drooping down, perked up or tipped back a bit.

She was the runt of the litter.  Joe's buddy actually got the largest male dog from the litter and we got the tiniest female dog of the litter - not planned and unknown until after we had each selected the dog we wanted from the litter.  At adult size IPA is between 50-55 pounds and Rigby (Joe's buddy's dog, IPA's brother) is nearly 100 pounds.  It's fun to see them play together.

About her totally perfect-for-her name, IPA.  For those unsure of how to say that, we pronounce it "Ip-pah," but always spell it IPA.  IPA is a type of beer, India Pale Ale.  We never call her "India Pale Ale" or "I. P. A." or any variation other than IPA (Ip-pah) or Ip. 

As soon as I knew we were getting a dog, of course I excitedly started suggesting names for our future pooch.  We both have lots of hobbies, but since the puppy was going to be (mostly) "Joe's dog," I narrowed in on his hobbies of hunting (of course, since the puppy was going to become a trained hunting dog), woodworking, cooking and brewing beer for name inspiration.  

When I suggested IPA, I pronounced it by saying "I" "P" "A," but quickly said I think pronouncing it "Ip-pah" would be perfect.  IPA beer is generally light in color, but has a potent alcohol content...or feisty.  IPA would prove to be both of these things - she's a very light colored yellow lab and she's definitely a little feisty.  

*Funny side story.  My friend Christy, who is more of a bubbly than a beer type person, once ordered an "Ip-pah" while out to dinner with me.  So endearing, her enthusiasm for "drinking to IPA" and literally asking a waitress to bring her whatever Ip-pah they have on tap.  

**Another side story.  I love the name Clover for a puppy too (Clover is also a crafty brand-name, so fits with my hobbies).  Six week old puppies are ridiculously cute, and saying "Roll over Clover" is the icing on the cake when watching a puppy wriggle, trying to roll over.  

When IPA was little, this is how she would sleep.  In fact, sometimes she still sleeps half off her dog bed (but that might be because, up until a few days ago, her bed was too tiny for her...).

See?  You can see the little pointy bump on the top of her head here, too.

There was a time when IPA was the "baby" of the house.  Here she is wearing the baby bib and ankle rattles that were sent to us when we found out we were expecting a baby.  


*************

I was going to make this post about how we recently lost IPA and found her.  But this is going to be a "To Be Continued..." post.  I need a little sleep (who am I kidding; I need some Girl Scout cookies and junk TV), so I'm signing off for tonight. In the coming days look another IPA story.

Three Of My Three

For some reason this picture says "after-school" to me.  Gathered around the counter.  Snacking and doing homework.

The older I get, the more kids I have, the more I like Old Navy.  Fleece hat and mitten sets - with velcro to keep the hats put (on the youngest, anyway) - for about $2.  $0.47.  Oh Yeah!

The Times They Are Changing

Me & Max, Winter 2008

Back in the day, five years ago when Max was only nubbing one year old, times were different.  We could take him tubing at the Theo Wirth tubing hill.  Hold him in our laps and coast down the hill.  Trudge back up the hill with toddler and tube in tow to do it all again.  For a good 10 minutes anyway, until we couldn't keep his mittens and boots from falling off and and we'd retire fearing frost bite setting in. 

It's been five years since we tubed at Theo Wirth park.  And now we've got six little mittens and boots to make sure stay on hands and feet, so we needed to thoughfully plan a good time to take our whole crew tubing.  And we did just that last week.  Almost.

I researched and found that kids tube free on Wednesdays.  Joe and I figured out a couple Wednesdays that we could leave early from work and held the time on our calendars.  We saw that last Wednesday was going to be mid-30 degrees.  So we divided and conquered, me leaving the office by 4pm (huge feat) to go pick up Max, Otto & Wren and meet Joe at the tubing hill by 4:45pm (huger feat), leaving enough time to tube and still get home for dinner and the whole nighttime routine.



Here we are after getting the whole family all bundled up in the parking lot of Theo Wirth park. You can tell from the wet cement that it was balmy out.  Our whole plan couldn't have worked out any better...

...except that when we went to get our wristbands to rent tubes they looked at me and Joe like we were crazy.  Apparently the rules have changed, and unless your taller than Max you can't go tubing.  Not by yourself.  Not in the lap of your parent.  I tried to sweet talk them about how careful we'll be.  How when our darling oldest son was just 11 months he got to go in our laps.  That we're just trying to let our whole family experience the thrill of their great tubing hill.  He wasn't changing his mind.

Lucky for us there was a sledding hill (not associated with the strict tubing rules of the P&R department) less than a mile away.  Even better that I happen to schlep a couple sleds in my trunk throughout the winter.  And furthermore, all five of us were already in snowpants. 

The boys were a little sad because they wanted to tube, not just sled, but ended up enjoying Sunset Hill. 

All the while on this outing I just kept thinking how the times are changing.  I vividly remember piling into the back of a pick-up truck for a drive when I was little.  At Max's age I'm pretty sure my sisters and I were driving ourselves on 4-wheelers. Oh the times they are changing!  And yet there are some things that we're going to keep the same for our crew.

This little one, who had her 1st sledding hill experience at a few months old (and our only snow fall last year), loved it. The more we spun around and around while sledding down the hill the more she giggled.

 

Pretty sunset that we sledded down toward.  Must be why they call it Sunset Hill. 

Keeping Up With Her Brothers. Beautifully.

Not only has it been two weeks, but for the next six months we've got the three kids all at the same school!  

Wren's at the JCC, and keeping up with her brothers quite beautifully.

A few things of note...

One location for drop-off and pick-up is nice.  But.  There's always a but...

But we only have one car that fits all three kids, so trying to figure out drop-off and pick-up has been a bit tricky.  Either we both go and divide up the kids between cars, or one person has to do both drop-off and pick-up on the same day.  

That brings me to the actual dropping off and picking up of the kids.  It is a looooong task.  Many nights, when it was just Max & Otto, pick-up would take a half hour.  Add another kid into the mix and some nights it's taken me 45 - yes 45 - minutes from the time I park my car outside daycare until the time I have three kids and myself buckled up and ready to roll home.  One night I did it under 20 minutes flat.  Joe and I are still trying to figure out how that happened and what we can do to make it happen again.

On Wren's first day, actually her first week at school, she did a great job at drop-off.  She joined Max and Otto at the breakfast table and started eating her pancake for breakfast.  Otto, however, was very clingy and shed the tears that day as I needed to leave for work.  

This week, Wren's 2nd week at the JCC, she cried just a little at her drop-offs.  Within a few moments she'd settle down and enjoy her teacher and brother's company.

Max and Otto really love having her at their school.  Max gets to see her every Tuesday, as their classes pass each other walking to and from swim lessons.  Otto and Wren's class even play together once in awhile.  I've also received an email from Otto's friend's mom that Otto told her how his sister Wren goes to school with him now and he wanted to introduce her.  Max loves visiting Wren in her classroom and his teachers have been kind about using a visit to Wren as a reward for his continued good behavior.    

Back to Wren...  It seems like she's having a really good time at school.  Her teachers - as well as her brother's teachers, who often see her - have been sharing stories with us of all the fun she's having.  That she's super happy and smiley and giggly.  

When we pick her up she's always been engaged and playing with other kids/teachers and comes running to us for a really warm welcome back hug.  When we ask if she had a fun day she gives us a big head nod up and down telling us "Yes," which is so nice to see.  And she loves to blow kisses to everyone as we say good-bye for the night.  

Skate Night, Date Night

Last Friday night the boys spent the night at Grandma Diane and Papa John's house.  Due to Diane's back injury, it was the first time since early October that they'd stayed the night.  I found a sitter for Wren so Joe and I could have a nice night out.

It was a balmy 26 degrees so we decided to lace up our skates, hit the ice and enjoy the refreshing night air.  It was our first time skating at Edinborough Park/Centennial Lakes in Edina and it was the most charming little (big, actually) skating pond.  I honestly felt like we'd found the "Central Park" skating rink of Minneapolis! 

We skated our way through the lit brick archways along with lots of other couples on dates and families.  And then we got cold and hungry and went out in search of hearty pasta and red wine.

After trying to get a table at five different restaurants (all had an hour wait), we wound up back in our neighborhood and had an amazing meal at Tosca.  Delicious fresh in-house made pasta, salad and bread.  Following dinner we walked next door to Turtle Bread for chocolate brownies, fudge and coffee.

A perfect little date night, that got ourselves and the babysitter home with enough time so Joe and I could watch the season 4 finale (from about 5 years ago) of Friday Night Lights. 

It's only the beginning of 2013, but Joe and I have enjoyed a January and February date.  And March is on the books, too.  Being twogether is one of our best resolutions so far.



Happy 5th Birthday, Max

I remember thinking, before I had my own kids, how 5 years old was soooooo old.  I'd hear of colleagues who had 5 year olds and I'd immediately get the same feeling I had while in my teen years thinking that 30 years was so old.  That I'd never be that old.  And that my kids would never be 5 years old.  The idea of it was too fuzzy.  It seemed way too far off in the distance to even grasp it.  It was for someone else's life, but not my own. 

And here we are.  

Welcoming Max to the age of five.  Welcoming our family to "school-age."

It's such an exciting time. Seeing personality traits and interests deepening and becoming an even more important part of who Max is.  Making me realize that his traits that have been here since birth are here to stay.  

Max has always been, and I'm guessing always will be incredibly expressive. He's emotive and animated and articulate.  He's quick to get worked up, but usually pretty quick to calm back down.  He's got conviction.  Man does he have conviction.  At times we need to agree to disagree as he likes to toss around "Actually, I KNOW..."  He KNOWS a lot for a five year old:)  And then their are those "Because I'm the Mom, that's why" (eeek! yikes!) times.

He's so curious in a listening and learning and wants to find out kind of way.  He has an attention span.  Although he's "all boy" we've never had a problem or heard from teachers that he can't sit still.  As long as he's engaged he'll sit for hours and listen to books or watch something being built.  

He likes his alone time.  Which is odd to grasp, because when he's with other people he doesn't stop talking and trying to get their attention...yet as quick as he's trying to get everyone to pay attention to him, he's telling us he wants to be by himself.  That there are too many people around (specifically in his school classroom).  

On this note, he tried soccer a couple times, and quickly gave up on it both times.  He hated the masses of kids on the team and spectators in the gym.  For a year he's been asking to take violin lessons because "There are just a couple kids in the violin lessons and I like that better."  Finally I got my act together - violin lessons start Saturday.  We'll see if the solo/small group setting is any better for Max's extracurriculars.

At five years Max seems to be getting ready for Kindergarten. He's asking for more "curriculum" at school.  Free Play time is when he gets into trouble...trolling for trouble I always think when it's free time without having a project/challenge/goal.  He's working on building up his self control/self policing of his behavior in these environments.  He loves his enrichment classes. He loves Hebrew, and that teacher tells us he is so well behaved, engaged, learning and smiling.  He loves his "Master Chef" class where he cooks.  He wishes his teachers would bring his class outside more in the winter (I agree).  

He's enjoying practicing writing words and learning to read.  I'm pretty sure his favorite thing all day is reading out of chapter books (listening to Mom and Dad read to him out of chapter books).  It's also become my favorite part of the day.  We have been devouring books - every night my throat is dry from reading aloud for an hour.  We have a list a mile long of classic kid's books I read when younger and it's a blast re-reading them and experiencing them through Max's imagination.  The other day we read Roald Dahl's "Fantastic Mr Fox" which is both of our current favorite.  When we need to separate him and Otto if they're getting on each other's nerves, Max can't wait to put on headphones and listen to books on the iphone. 

The older Max gets, the more I can't wait to see what the next day brings.  What the next years will bring.  At this age, when I watch him sleep, he is definitely a 5 year old. I can still see his baby face, while catching a glimpse of what he'll look like as a teenager.  I like it. 

Happy Five Years, Max!!!

Max with his friends Owen and Max H at his party.  The two Maxes are BFFs at school, so it was only fitting Max H showed up to Max S's party wearing the same shirt.  His party was at an indoor playground and I must say it was the easiest party we've ever hosted. Everyone played and then came together for dirt cake and some presents!

Max with a couple birthday balloons.  This is the best picture I have of him from his 5th Birthday.  If he sees the camera he runs away or makes goofy, forced smiles:)

Grandma Diane and Papa John came over for pizza delivery dinner and cupcakes

Time-Outs

Since last December Joe and I have been scheduling special 1:1 time with the kids each week.  So, every weekend Joe gets 1:1 time with one of the kids, then the next weekend I get 1:1 with one of the kids.  It's a cycle ensuring that every 6 weeks both of us have had 1:1 time with each child. 

As I write this I know it does not sound like a lot of "special" time, but trust me, it's already made a world of difference. Part of it is just knowing I will have a special date I get to plan every other weekend for one of the kids.  A chance to reconnect and meet the child where he or she is at rather than having to try and make everyone happy.  Plus, having only two kids while Joe's on a date with one kid is also a very nice treat.  When all is said and done, both Joe and I are getting a chance to experience the kids in a variety of different "combinations" from solo to Max&Otto, Max&Wren, Otto&Wren.

Earlier this week I was driving the kids to school and my conversation with Max went something like this:


Max:  "Mom, you know when you and Daddy have your time outs?"

Me:  "I'm not sure I know what you mean.  Are you asking if Daddy and I have to take time-outs (every parent wishes they could!)?

Max:  "No, I mean when Daddy and I have a time out.  When we take our time-outs together.  When will Daddy and I have our next time out together?"


I love it.  From now on they are not 1:1's.  They are Time-Outs!

At my last Time-Out with Max.  Paint your own pottery

Followed by Yogurt[lab], which I highly recommend! 

It's so much fun to spoil each kid with something they want to do!!

Say "Hershey Kisses with Peanut Butter"

While the kids were playing the other night I decided to grab my phone and attempt to grab some photos of them.  They were tumbling on the bed, so it wasn't a very fruitful session.  

In the interest of trying to get the three of them at least not all blurry, I said "A Hershey Kiss with a blob of peanut butter on top for anyone who stops bouncing and lets me snap a couple photos."  As you can see, Max promptly sat and gave a forced smile.  Wren slowed down and briefly thought about it.  Otto couldn't take his mind off wondering why I had put in him in a size 12 month swim speedo (we were trying on suits).

Here's Max trying to pull his brother and sister in for a photo so they could all have a Hershey Kiss.  

Wren was like "I'm outta here because I know I'm getting a Kiss no matter how long I sit still."

Alright.  These few are the best I got.  

I love how much they all resemble each other.

Maybe not triplets, but they sure look similar.

Then I said "Thanks, Kisses coming up!"  And they were back to bouncing!