Coxsackie Guilt

Well, we are happy to say we had a great time seeing my Aunts and Uncles in MB, but sad to say, Rhianwen was unwittingly spreading coxsackie virus to her poor little first cousin once removed. I feel so ROTTEN about this, but at the time we just thought the drool and tiredness was from teething (something that she is also doing).

The inoculation.

We had a very enjoyable Valentine's day and very low key. Rhianwen decorated a card to daddy with Winnie the Pooh stickers. For some reason she LOVES Winnie the Pooh even though she's never seen any shows or really read any of the stories. I have shown her the Winnie the Pooh song online, but that is about all! She also got a Pooh from her poor little first cousin once removed which she loves. She even remembers who it is from b/c we'll ask her where her gift from him is, and she'll look around and say, "Pooh?"

The sweet card for daddy.

Daddy brought home Valentine balloons for Rhianwen, a first for her, and pansies for us to plant and water. I am so excited! Rhianwen helped plant them on Monday and was a pro at transferring dirt from the bag to everywhere else. We now have 2 really cute planters out front and a bunch of dirt on the deck to prove it. (And no, the coxsackie virus did not have her down for long. Just for Saturday night. So we are thankful she had such a mild case).

We got Indian takeout which we loved but Rhianwen hated. Despite the fact that we got mild, it was still too spicy for her, and she cried until we gave her some milk to wash it down. Instead we went with the tried and true macaroni and cheese which she ate with relish.

Indian cuisine, on a tablecloth from India, with Camelias which have nothing to do with India as far as I know.

Rhianwen enjoyed opening all of her fun cards from the family and a fun coloring book and gloves from Grandmama and Grandaddy. We unwittingly gave her a card that looked a lot like "Snowbear" her best bud who sleeps with her and gets dressed and drinks her water and gets carried around a good part of the day. She was so excited when she saw it and kept exclaiming, "Nobear! Nobear!" She also had a lot of fun with the confetti that fell out of Aunt Clara's card.

"Nobear" at Grandma Nanny Kim's and Grandpa's is about to be put in Mommy's old toy crib. We now have it back at our house too.

In other doings, Rhianwen has discovered the joys of eating pears.

Oh how fun! (This was taken on a very healthy day...see mom, I told you her cheeks just are rosy at times! Has nothing to do with fever or sickness.)

We had mentioned in a previous post the struggles Rhianwen was having between deciding whether to be gollum or a hobbit. Well, now we think she may be tempted to join the black riders. What ever happened to a sense of nobility? Her steed needs to be a tad less turquoise to really fit, so I don't think she will make the cut.



Washing things has been another of Rhianwen's new pass times. How I wish this task could remain a fun thing for her. I always wonder, when does it become a chore? Probably when we have to do it out of our sense of obligation or cleanliness instead of out of a sense of discovery and freedom. I sometimes wonder if I approach mundane things like this with the wrong outlook and how I can rediscover the enjoyment of such things...(perhaps if I just left the dishes until I really found it exciting to wash them...hmmmmmmm).



Here is a video showing Rhianwen's budding acting and janitorial skills.

Lastly, Rhianwen got to meet her Great Aunt and a bigger first cousin once removed (from Wally's side of the fam) on Monday at Subway. Her Great Aunt was fabulous at carrying the conversation...the topic? Rhianwen's Pooh bib of course. Very impressive skills for a stranger to be successful at getting Rhianwen to say anything to them!