Our princess and zebra are ready…

-M

In honor of Halloween approaching, I played Michael Jackson’s Thriller on the way home from school one day. When the Vincent Price part started, I watched Avery’s reaction in the rearview mirror; she first listened curiously, then covered her face with her hands when the creepy laughing started. “I don’t like that man,” she told me with a pout after the song ended. (I was reminded of how freaked out that video made me when I was kid – closer to Zoe’s age than Avery’s.) But after I explained that it was just a song, and the man was just playing a role (and wasn’t really a bad guy), she seemed eager to hear the song again. And now she loves it!

-M

As anyone who follows our blog knows, there’s always a Halloween activity/event to attend this time of year. On Friday evening, it was a carnival at Stern Grove – and the girls, Q and I met up with several friends there.

-M

It’s been almost a year and a half since Avery had her ear-tube surgery. So how’s she doing? A trip to her ENT doc today revealed that the ear tubes are still in and will likely fall out this fall or winter. (They typically stay in place between 6 and 24 months.) We know from past tests and our own observation that her hearing is back to normal, and her speech is age-appropriate, also. We have our first parent-teacher conference of the school year in two weeks, so we’ll know more then – but her teachers also report that she’s doing well.

Sometimes Avery will be in the middle of a conversation – going on and on about something – and I’m struck with how clear she’s talking and how far she’s come. It’s so nice to not have to worry anymore!

-M

We were out of town for last year’s Boo at the Zoo and so decided to make it to this year’s event. Instead of two little ladybugs, we had a witch and a fairy – oh, and Grandma and Grandpa along for the ride!

-M

Grandma and Grandpa came out for a recent visit, and Avery spent a few days with them while Zoe was in school. Among the things on their agenda: coloring, baking, shopping and running around a pumpkin patch.

-M

Speaking of first grade, one of Zoe’s big projects this fall involved apple dolls: making one and writing up a short story about hers. Below is Zoe’s creation, which was unveiled to parents just this week. She named it “Blue.”

-M

About a month ago I mentioned that Zoe was really tired out by first grade. Shortly after writing about it here, I sent her teacher an e-mail – asking whether this was typical (though I assumed it was). Her response:

The transition to first grade is huge!! And it takes time. I am sure most of the children are coming home exhausted - they are on the go from 8:15-3:15, and even longer if they have an after school class. Her tiredness and crankiness is completely normal and to be expected. I find all of the school holidays makes the transition even harder for students and teachers; I will be happy to get into the school routine in October. Trust me, Zoe and the other kids will get used to the routine of longer days and harder academics, I would give her another few weeks.

How right Mrs. Eisenhauer was! Though Zoe still has her tired moments, the tears, tantrums and un-like Zoe behavior that we saw in the beginning of the school year did indeed go away. I’m happy to have my Zoe back – and happier to have a teacher who is there for us when we need her!

-M

Avery was supposed to be napping the other afternoon, but what she was really doing (as I found out by peeking in her window) was caring for and taking pictures of her baby. I wish I had gotten video of her rocking the doll – she stopped, natch, just as I started the camera – but the video is pretty sweet regardless.

-M

Last weekend, the girls and I met up with Angela in Petaluma, about an hour north of the city. We explored yet another pumpkin patch – this one with a totally different (i.e. more rural) feel than the others we’ve visited. The girls had a really fun time playing around on a huge pile of haystacks, going on hay rides and navigating through their first real corn maze; as I told Ang, I think we created another annual tradition!

-M

Last week, Zoe was “Student of the Week,” a title that’s rotated among her classmates throughout the school year. As part of the festivities, she made and presented “My Very Own Poster,” read a book and presented zucchini muffins to the class (with me and Avery in tow), and even quizzed her classmates on “10 things you might not know about Zoe.” The fact that really stumped the class? That she was born with a crooked nose.

-M

Out of curiosity – and because I don’t think I’ve ever asked her before – I asked Avery over the weekend what she wanted to be when she grew up. Her  simple answer (quite appropriate, given her Halloween costume) was, “A princess.”

-M

Another of our favorite October activities is to trick-or-treat (and greet the Peanuts gang) at Great America. Here are my favorite photos from our visit there on Saturday.

-M

Some readers know that this past week was a big one for me: Stanford’s med school had two Nobel winners (one in medicine, the other in chemistry), which means I was up at 3 AM doing communications work on Monday and Wednesday. By Wed. afternoon I was, of course, ridiculously tired – and the first thing I did after picking up the girls was peel off my clothes and jump into bed for a nap. Q was still at work, but here’s something that made me proud: The girls, now old enough to understand that Mommy really, really needed to sleep, entertained themselves (and didn’t get into trouble!) for the hour or so between my drifting off to sleep and Q arriving home. When I woke up that evening (just in time to bid the kids good-night), I gave Zoe a dollar and told her much I appreciated the fact that she had “babysat” her sister.

There is a lot to miss about having babies and small children, but having older ones is pretty great, too.

-M

When Q brought home a singing skeleton a few months back, I rolled my eyes and secretly plotted to return it before Halloween. (It was silly and loud, I thought.) But once the girls saw it, my plans flew out the window: As Avery demonstrates in the video below, they love this thing!

-M