Catching up and BIRTHDAYS!!

I'm so sorry I haven't posted since Tuesday. We've been busy, and during the time I normally write posts, I've been working.

FIRST, HAPPY BIRTHDAY to Auntie Chinka (yesterday, on the 28th), Lib (today), and Grandpa Ollie tomorrow!! What a nice weekend of birthdays. We miss all of you and wish we could celebrate with you.

Second, I have some news for all of you: we bought our plane tickets to Seattle. We (Lizzie, Tommy and I) arrive on July 20 and leave on August 24. Eli leaves on August 2. (That's right, I'm flying home alone, but it's just a nine hour flight and it will be at night. Plus, Tommy loves TV.)

Now the update. We've had a nice week! Tommy's potty training is going beautifully. He even made it three hours without having an accident yesterday when we went to watch the changing of the guard. Note to those of you with small kids: the changing of the guard is not overly interesting for them. It's alright for 45 seconds, but otherwise, you'd better have a lot of snacks.

Yesterday, Tommy took a nice long nap because he got out of bed before 5:30. Now that Grandma Nancy is his roommate, after he wakes up, he gathers his tools (making enough noise to wake the whole household), climbs down and heads out to the living room. (He used to play in bed until we got him.) The bedroom doors in this flat don't stay open, so we know he's up for sure when the door slams and then we hear him running to the living room. Anyway, that all happened really early yesterday, so he had a good nap. After nap, he and Grandma made pizza dough, then Tommy, Grandma and Lizzie went out to the garden to play with Luc while I got a pedicure! Have I mentioned how much I'm going to miss Grandma Nancy?

On Thursday, Tommy and I went to the digger park and out to lunch with Claire and Luc. It was fun to hang out with just Tommy and he was mostly a good boy, though we had a couple of sharing issues and at one point he swatted Luc with a spade so he had a time out. After his time out, he said, "Mom, I promise to be a good boy." It was very sweet and surprising and I must've reacted well because now he says it all the time, even when his behavior isn't at issue. After nap, we went to the science museum which has a nice place to play, but we didn't stay long because it was overstimulating and I couldn't get Tommy to calm down.

Lizzie likes to sit up (against cushions) and play with toys now. When she gets something in her hand, she knows to wave it around to see if it makes an interesting noise. She is pretty much adorable if I do say so myself.

Happy long weekend!