Uh oh

Our house has a naughty mat. Some people may be unfamiliar with the term, but its just what it sounds like. It is a small rug that sits on the floor in front of the laundry closet, where Maggie sits when in time out. We sit her there, set the timer, walk away, and wait for it to beep. When it does, we go hug her, tell her to say sorry and explain the offense. Well apparently, while I was at work today, Maggie thought her baby needed a timeout. So she put her on the naughty mat. She then told her No No. She walked into the kitchen near the stove (which is right by the microwave, where we use the timer.) Then she walked back, picked up her baby, and hugged her. I guess at least if nothing else we are consistent. The funny thing is though, she doesn't get timeouts that often. She is smart enough now though, that if you say, do you want to go on the naughty mat? She will say no, and stop the behavior that she was doing. She hates the naughty mat. Funny stuff.

First Zoo Trip

So, the Keen set of grandparents were in town for a visit, and we all took a trip to the zoo. This was Maggie's first trip and we think she had a good time. She was particularly fond of the Gorillas, both in real and statue form, as you will see from the pictures. Highlights of the day, showing up to the monkey house minutes after a baby monkey was born. Try and see the tiny baby clutching onto its mother. Its hard to see, but if you look closely you can tell. It was still all wet and she was cleaning it up. When the zoo keeper said the monkey had not passed the placenta yet, we headed out. That was something we didn't want to see. Maggie did take a tumble while running around, scraping both her knees. Luckily, the undying camp counselor in me continues to carry instant ice packs and bandaids. So I wiped her up and slapped bandaids on her "bo bo" as she calls it. She was so cute. Every animal was greeted with a hi and every animal was told bye bye as we left. It was a good day.

Maggie Rose or Rosemary's Baby?

So, I encountered the fit to rival all fits. Amusing though it may be for those who watched, for the moody pregnant mom, it was less than fun.

Scene: Sam spends the whole day taking her daughter around to do fun stuff. We go to the little zoo near our house. Play at the park. Go for a ride on the bike. All of these things great, right? Sam decides to take daughter Maggie to the small park near our house that has a water feature that sprays all kinds of water and changes direction and sprays. Fun for kids of all ages.

Maggie loved it. When I say loved it, I mean if she were about 20 years old she probably would have wanted to marry it. It didn't matter that I let her play for 30 minutes, her skin was clammy to the touch, and her lips had a blueish tinge. She would have stayed forever. So when I try to take her home, literally all hell breaks loose. She lets out a scream that cannot compare to anything that I have ever heard come out of her mouth. I thought she was possessed. So then, the petite, pregnant mom must wrangle her slippery daughter, and proceed to carry her the block and a half home. Not a small task with such a determined girl. She proceeded to scream as though I was beating her. I intentionally sat with her outside for about 20-25 more minutes so that the neighbors could see that I was clearly not beating her, as they watched her pace back and forth on the sidewalk screaming. Every time she would calm down, she would pass by me again, look me in the eye with the most defiant face ever, and proceed with the screaming. After the 20 minutes I transferred her into the house, and decided to try the naughty mat. She then spent the next ten minutes kicking the laundry closet and crying. After which I picked her up, and she sobbed pitifully on my shoulder, as though her world collapsed. Of course, Jeremy walks in the door 5 minutes later, and she is once again the angel that only Daddy knows.

As tough as that whole situation was, I spent half the fit trying not to let her see me laughing. She is so darn cute, even when she is mad.

Hot time, summer in the suburbs

Yesterday it was quite warm. Hot actually. Humid. Felt a bit like Houston, TX. So we decided to let Maggie play in the hose for a bit. She loved it. See pics below. It was quite fun. She kept trying to spray us, but would accidentally spray herself in the face. The fit she threw when we turned off the hose was enormous. So it goes.

The Sweetest Sound

So, not too much is new. We went to the doctor today. We were relieved to hear a tiny, but strong heartbeat pumping away. It was in the 150's, which is a good range. While we were waiting in the exam room, Maggie was getting impatient and singing NKOTB. This girl is a trip. She has begun saying quite a few more 2 syllable words, such as Purple, Yellow, and her friends name Ella. Maggie is currently going through a phase where she must say goodbye to inanimate objects that she passes. Jeremy is playing several shows in the near future, so if you have the time and are close by, check out his website for details. www.jeremykeen.com
Peace. I'm out.