Glasses

Miranda now sees the world through lenses. Her right eye has been wandering inward since just before we left for China, and the pediatric ophthalmologist tells us she is farsighted. So, for an hour or two in the morning she wears a patch on the stronger eye, and on Friday we picked up her glasses. Yesterday was a struggle to keep them on, and there was one scare at the Boston Aquarium when we thought they were lost, but in all we probably got two or three hours out of her. And today she's started to leave them on longer and act like they belong there. She looks so adorable with them on, but dramatically older to my mama eyes. Will I ever get over this tension as I watch the girls grow up-- being so proud of their progress and at the same time feeling terribly sad about letting go of their little selves?

I took the girls to the park at the end of our street this week and instead of our usual play on the swings and slides let them wander around the basketball court with a few balls. Our neighbors with kids often show up where we are, so we had Miranda, two other two-year olds, and little Phoebe. I'll tell you, Phoebe is amazing. There she was, keeping up with the big kids--trotting all over the court, chasing the balls and keeping herself entertained while her mama caught up with friends. She keeps up with the two-year olds now.

Early Intervention came this week to assess Miranda, who at her two-year old check-up still couldn't run, jump, or climb up on the couch herself. It was great fun to watch her ace all their brainiac tasks, and then when they tried to get her to jump she walked over to the bookshelf and pulled out a book. While her qualitative assessment of gross motor function puts her at 25 months-- right where she should be-- they agree that she's less confident and more wobbly than most kids her age. We are going to have a pediatric physical therapist stop by for a session or two to help us work on a plan. Honestly, I think we need to get more athletic equipment and encourage physical play more, and read books less. And she needs to play more with the 26 month old boy across the street who shoots baskets from 5 feet away (and makes 50%!) and hits a ball in the air with a baseball bat.

One of the members on Miranda's assessment team did Phoebe's assessment four weeks ago. Let me just say, she was shocked. She eyeballed the assessment paperwork and put Phoebe's gross motor function at a 15 month level-- that's up from SEVEN month level a month ago, and is just a month shy of her actual age. Phoebe is using signs like mad now-- baby, eat, drink, milk, hat, cat, dog, flower. Her comprehension is really getting better, too, and I love to watch her use the right signs in response to my verbal cues. Today I said, "Are you ready to eat some lunch?" and she signed "eat" while saying "mmmm". That's my girl!

With so much fun to report, I almost forgot to mention, here, that's I'm back to work. This half-time schedule could really grow on me. I go in to the clinic in the morning, with last patient scheduled for a noon appointment, then get home when the work is done-- sometimes when the kids are still napping, sometimes when they are just up. We have the whole summer afternoon together to play at the beach, go to the pool, play on the Common, and have play dates, before heading home to cook dinner before Mark comes home. My second morning was the hardest leave-taking, with each girl clinging to one of my legs, and Miranda sobbing, "No work, Mama, no work!" while Phoebe screamed. But they get over my parting quickly and really seem to love their new nanny. That's just how it should be.