Here are the poems for the girls this month.
Our Spring has begun and as usual we have had a few snow storms here in Colorado. Spring break in Karen’s school district was a week before Isabella and Mythili’s break. The girls had a snow day during Karen’s break and the weather was generally crappy the entire week. The following week was a perfect week for Isabella and Mythili’s break. The weather was nice the entire week and we had a chance to do a lot of fun activities. We spent much of our time with our friends the Mentzers including playtime, a trip to the zoo, and even a sleep over. I think the girls had a pretty fun and well rounded spring break.
The Easter holiday was a nice and relaxing day. The girls started early as they were very excited to wear the new dresses their Nanny and Pappy sent them. We heard them rustling around at about 6:30 and by the time Karen and I made it upstairs they were nearly dressed and ready to hunt the eggs. They quickly found their baskets, filled by the Easter Bunny, sitting in the traditional spot in front of the fire place. After spending a few minutes comparing each others loot they finally decided they each had the same items. At this point, the girls were raring to get outside and hunt all the eggs we had colored the day before. That activity was put off till mid morning when it had warmed up a bit. The rest of the day was spent eating candy and re-hunting the eggs over and over. We made a couple of Skype calls to Nanny and Pappy to say hi to them as well as to show them the new dresses they sent for the girls. Karen’s parents joined us for dinner and spent the day hanging out at our house. We had a nice pot roast dinner and topped it off with the pear tarte tatin dessert Karen prepared for us. It was a great day and a nice ending to the girls spring break.
After having two weeks off, Karen’s break and the girls, we had to get up and back on schedule early Monday morning. Well it seems Isabella wasn’t ready to head back to school and needed a few more days off. At least that is what happened since she ended up with Pink Eye! Monday morning Isabella woke up for us to find her left eye was bright red and swollen. After another two days off she finally got back to school today. While on the other hand, Mythili missed her school today because of a fever and feeling cruddy. Those little bugs just don’t seem to want to leave us alone.
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I’m trying to write a poem a month for each girl. Here’s this month’s edition: March Daughters.
Tags: poetry
How did March get equated with basketball? Does everyone in the country really follow the college sports that closely? We were at a party last year during March and someone there was genuinely appalled when I told him that I don’t pay attention to any of it and couldn’t even name the “Big Ten” teams (or whatever they’re called!).
As parents, our March Madness looks a little differently. First of all, our girls don’t seem to show any interest in sports, which is fine with me. I even took them to a Hoops for Heart basketball tournament at my school a few weeks ago, thinking it would be a relatively easy way to pass the afternoon. Not five minutes after we arrived, all three were whining, “When is this thing going to be over?” I can’t say I was disappointed.
On the other hand, when we went to see the musical Mary Poppins last week at the Buell, the girls were thrilled. As usual, Isabella couldn’t wait to get all dressed up, and had a minor tantrum about her lack of fancy shoes. They loved watching Mary Poppins fly across the stage, and even up into the audience at the end, and were singing the songs and practicing their tap dancing moves for days afterward. I think we might just have ourselves a house full of artists!
This March is especially crazy because I am training for a half marathon, so running like crazy four days a week, still keeping up with all the Girl Scout work, and the girls have just finished their skate lessons in time for all three to begin swim lessons again. Since we’ll be gone all summer in Kentucky, we had to slip the lessons in at an indoor pool starting at the end of March. Meanwhile, we have been filling our days with bike riding, visiting the park down the road that has a new “train” playground, and trying to keep the antsy-sick-of-winter girls busy and happy on cold, snowy days that always plague us at this time of year, just when we think spring has sprung!
And now that all three girls are mobile (truly mobile–able to walk long distances without dragging their feet or complaining too much) and potty trained, I must admit that trips to places like the zoo, museum, or mall are actually more pleasurable. No longer do we have to lug a stroller or a diaper bag every time we go out. I thought for sure I would miss the baby years, and in many ways I do, but I must say, I am enjoying being able to take my girls to places and not having to worry about all the things we must carry. That right there is the best way to handle March Madness: ignore the basketball scores and be thankful for what really matters. And we all know what really matters: kids who can wipe their own butts and walk up four flights of stairs to your balcony seats. 
Tags: diapers, March Madness, Mary Poppins musical, parenting, swim lessons
