2 Violets High

Total Snowfall in Boston for Winter of 2010-2011




Shaq-o-meter courtesy of the Boston Globe.
Interesting that the all-time record was set the first year that I lived here. Can't believe it didn't scare me away. New Englanders are hearty people. Day care was OPEN today and a crew of 10 strong men descended on my house this morning and shoveled us out of a fresh 10" in about 10 minutes. Then the sun came out. It was a good day.

Sick

The return to the North East hasn't been easy. Wednesday we were hit with a pretty big snow storm - we got a little over a foot which hasn't melted and just makes getting around extra hard. Thursday I had jury duty at 8am in Lowell, MA which is about an hour north of Boston. I was really concerned about getting there on time (not to mention being empanelled!) and had arranged with Violet's teacher to meet her at daycare at 7am. But because we were off the day before, she got confused and we ended up waiting outside of daycare for 1/2 hr in 20 degree temps minus V's mittens which she hates to wear (she also did not want to stay in her car seat in the warm car). I was late to jury duty, but it ended up being OK because they actually cancelled it after I had checked. Because I went up there, I got cleared for 3 years - phew! Friday was the first time I've gotten the call from daycare to come get V because of fever. We got home at around 3pm on Friday and haven't left since. V has progressively gotten worse and today we finally went to the doctor when she had a 104.5° fever. It took the doctor about 2 seconds to diagnose a double ear infection. It was quite a relief to find such a clear cause and to be able to start antibiotics right away. He said that our 3 week sojourn in Florida probably allowed her to let her immunity guard down so that when we returned to daycare, she was extra vulnerable. So for the last 124 hours I've been quarantined here with my sick girl. No play dates, minimal outside time in 18 degree weather and continual snow and sleet. V has spent a lot of the time stuck to me because she just doesn't feel good. It's amazing how much time you have when you can't go anywhere. I've have fully embraced the power of that little red devil Elmo and today I let her take tissues out of a box one by one and take them into the kitchen to thrown them away. Now that we've got her started on antibiotics we hopefully only have one more day in our little apartment. Not sure what we're going to do tomorrow. Another day of terrible weather is forecast, so I'm pretty sure it will involve more indoor activities.

Snow Day

We're back in Cambridge and back to reality. Today we were slammed by a foot of sloppy wet snow that downed trees and power lines. Day care was closed and I attempted to work from home although it was hard even with Sophia babysitting in the morning and V taking a 3 hour nap after lunch. We tried to get her to play in the snow, but she was a bit freaked out by it all. I guess I can understand. Just last week she was wearing sandals and learning about sand at the beach with her Grandmom and this morning she woke up and her entire world was white and cold and her daycare routine ground to a halt. I took her out a couple times to play in the snow, but she would have none of it - just wanted to be carried. I did catch her sampling a few of the flakes on her tongue though!

17 months!

Dear Violet,
Happy New Year! Today you are 17 months old! We are in Florida with Grandmommy and Grandaddy for a few weeks during the holidays. It has been wonderful to spend so much time with you and with our family. You have grown so much even since we've been here. You are talking and talking and it is so fun to hear you learn new words. You know more words than I can even count any more and you love to point out every bird (lots) and cars that you see and it makes my heart melt a little bit each time you scream "Mama!" when you see a picture of me. You know the names of many of your friends like Nina and Patrick. This morning you even said "Gorilla" ! All that growing sometimes makes it hard to sleep. You were doing really well when we first got here, but then you somehow got off track and the night before last you woke up at 3am and didn't go back to sleep until dawn. Luckily your Grandmommy is often up anyway and your Granddaddy has good ear plugs. Mama is tired, so she's going to bed now, but she will try to write more in this new year. Here are some pictures of our time here.

16 months!

Dear Violet,

Today you are 16 months old and no longer afraid of spiders....Mama will have to come up with a new child proofing strategy. You are getting to be a good climber too. Not only can you climb up into the kitchen chairs but you can also climb onto your rocking horse and go for a ride. I've almost taught you to say "yee haw", but sometimes you give me a frowny face when I try and make you say it.

You are very in love with your teachers Noemi and Irma these days. You squeal when you see them in the morning and run into their arms. You don't cry when I leave, but when I pick you up you are happy to see me and run into my arms and give me a hug and a kiss. Then you say "go, go!" and we go get your coat. You say "bye" to everyone and wave and blow kisses. I'm so proud of what a nice girl you are.

We are STILL working on sleeping through the night every night. You still seem to wake up sometimes for unknown reasons. Please don't hold it against me forever if I try to let you learn to soothe yourself back to sleep. I promise it's for the best, but it sure is torture when you cry at night sometimes. I still love you lots sweet girl.

-Mama

Cheers!

I told her that she wasn't quite tall enough yet, but she insisted on sitting in a chair tonight to eat dinner.

Thanksgiving in New England

It is really great to have family that you love dearly and get a long with so well....and it's great when they come to visit! It was so nice not to have to travel this year. We had a fantastic feast and a fun filled weekend. It was wonderful to spend quality time with David and Leslie but also with V. We survived my trip to Chicago, but it was hard on both of us. I woke up to her crying in the hotel room...in Chicago....We were very glad to see eachother last Friday.