The Cake Is A Lie.

[kv0925]

Well, weekend was kind of a bust. The weather was pretty gloomy, so outdoor plans weren't really happening Saturday we headed over to visit my Mom, since it had been a while and Amy had been asking to go there. Can't complain when the kids WANT to go to Grandma's house, right? So we hung out there for a while, went to a Mexican restaurant for lunch, and had ice cream cake as a belated celebration of Amy's birthday.

Speaking of, did I mention that? Amy turned 4 last week, which seems hard to believe. I neglect proper kid updates here, but they're all doing pretty well. Amy is the one who currently makes us want to pull our hair out, though. She's quite different from her sisters, that's for sure. They were always shy and quiet, for the most part. We had our struggles with Hallie as she went through these ages, but even that seems tame compared to Amy. She's just so tenacious, stubborn and determined. She knows what she wants and she wants it RIGHT NOW, as she is wont to tell us at high volume. Will not take no for an answer, everything is a negotiation, and if all else fails she resorts to name-calling and threats that are actually pretty hilarious. Last week there was an incident where she threatened to poop on our heads, which still makes me chuckle even as I type this. It's hard to maintain the requisite parental authority when your kid makes a threat that cracks you up.

Anyway, I keep telling Heather that it will pass, and eventually these characteristics will serve her very well indeed. Imagine if she always retains this level of stick-to-it-iveness and tenacity! Her focus sometimes is really quite amazing, especially when you consider her age. If she's on a roll, she'll sit for literally hours focused on one activity. I have trouble with that at MY age, and she's barely 4! She started violin lessons about a month ago, and she's amazingly good at those from what I hear. She'll occasionally disengage from the lesson and go over to Heather (who hangs out in the room) and ask when she can be done with the lesson. But then she goes right back to it, does what she's told, and apparently impresses the teacher with how well she does. At home, sometimes she'll head straight for her violin when she gets up in the morning, and she's been equally eager to work through the 100-lesson reading book with Heather. She gets excited to learn the next letter or sound, and it's pretty awesome to see her try to read things around the house or when we're out and about. Again, for someone who just turned 4, it's pretty amazing. But those bits definitely come at a price. :)

So anyway. Sunday there was a good chance of rain again, so we just ran around some stores and planned to spend the afternoon relaxing around the house. But then Heather mentioned that she'd noticed some water in the cabinet under the kitchen sink, which I determined was coming from the garbage disposal (garburator, for any Canucks in the audience). The old one came with the house, so it was probably due for replacement anyway, so I bought a new one and was pleasantly surprised at how easy it was to swap out. Of course, today Heather tells me that the dishwasher isn't draining, and I immediately realized there must naturally be a plug in the dishwasher inlet of the new unit since not everyone has a dishwasher, and I didn't knock it out. Oops, there's always something. So I know what I'm doing when I get home from work!

Oh, a quick update on my post about gaming and the girls. Tomb Raider: Anniversary has remained a hit with Hallie. We even started watching the first TR movie, and she likes that too. Some parts are tough for her, but she's doing fine for a 7-year-old, I think. I thought Portal would be good too, since it's all about navigating the environment and problem solving (plus the portal mechanics are cool), and she likes that one too, though I think some of the later levels are beyond her until she really gets the hang of WASD+mouse. I played through it myself, and can't help but wonder what took me so long. The humor baked into that game via GLaDOS is just my cup of tea, and I was utterly tickled by the "Still Alive" song at the end. :) So Portal 2 is probably next on my agenda. I also introduced the girls (including Amy!) to Terraria, and they've been having a blast with that one. They love the building and crafting part of it, and mainly play it for that rather than to advance through the game. But hey, whatever! We've been having a little emulation fun on the new HTPC, too. I'll have to see what they think of some Commodore 64 classics next!

Speaking of old video games and computers, have any of you read Ready Player One? I'd heard of it, and it sounded good. A friend gave it high praise on FB so I bumped it up to the top of my list, and wow, awesome read. Just a lot of fun, and irresistible to me. While I enjoy a lot of books, I can only recall a few that really grabbed me and made me impatient to get back to it so I could see what happened next. This one goes on that list!

Okay, better wrap up and get home to fix that dishwasher! I hope everyone's week is off to a good start!

Comments

[girlguitarist.livejournal.com]

I'm glad they're enjoying those games! I couldn't even figure out how to get through the first level of Portal so I need to try that again ;)

[cp.livejournal.com]

It's fun, especially when you get to the portals that you have to fall into so you come out the other side with momentum. :) And the humor is a nice touch, especially the song at the end. :)

[redqueenofevil.livejournal.com]

Too bad we are on opposite sides of the country. It seems like Amy and Kidlet would get along.

From a pedagogical standpoint, her break in the middle of the lesson isn't uncommon for that age. Not to mention violin requires a lot of concentration, and she probably needs that little dash away for a second. Is she studying Suzuki?

I was going to email you a question about Pelican cases, but I didn't get to. Do you have one, and do you like it?

[cp.livejournal.com]

Oh yes, don't get me wrong--at just barely 4 years old I'm amazed she's able to maintain her attention span as long and as well as she does for the lessons! It's just funny that she'll excuse herself to go ask, and then the answer satisfies her so she'll go back to it. :)

I don't believe it's Suzuki, no--her instructor is using the Essential Elements For Strings book, I think? We mainly started the lessons to see how well she'd do, maybe if she really takes to it and sticks with it we'll consider something more intense. But at this age who knows. We're at the point where we certainly want to encourage, but not force anything.

I've tried several bags and cases, but Pelican is a brand I have not tried! LowePro, Domke, Kata, I forget what else. I've heard good things about Pelican, and ThinkTank.

[re-vised.livejournal.com]

Love that your girls are into gaming. LOVE Portal. The song at the end was one of the best parts of the game!

[cp.livejournal.com]

I wasn't expecting it, it was quite a treat. I need to download the mp3! That would be a good song for my jogging mix. :)

[re-vised.livejournal.com]

GLaDOS makes that game, in my opinion. I mean, it's fun and all, but her talking is great.

[cp.livejournal.com]

Definitely some great one-liners in there. "You're a bad person. You know that, right?"

[re-vised.livejournal.com]

"Cake and grief counseling will be available at the conclusion of the test."

Never get sick of the reference to cake. In fact, my laptop has this wallpaper (https://www.google.com/search?q=the+cake+is+a+lie+wallpaper&espv=2&biw=1536&bih=758&tbm=isch&imgil=w50ogzXDkwZM2M%253A%253BIffZm4RKfWsATM%253Bhttp%25253A%25252F%25252Fwww.planetminecraft.com%25252Fblog%25252Fcake-is-a-lie-wallpaper-1920x1080-res%25252F&source=iu&pf=m&fir=w50ogzXDkwZM2M%253A%252CIffZm4RKfWsATM%252C_&usg=__T-kSR7pnKjbxrzE3aVkWLmFijL4%3D&ved=0CDEQyjc&ei=CMX1VN7mAsq0ggSJlYKICQ#imgdii=_&imgrc=w50ogzXDkwZM2M%253A%3BIffZm4RKfWsATM%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fstatic.planetminecraft.com%252Ffiles%252Fresource_media%252Fscreenshot%252F1323%252Fcake-lie_5659912_lrg.jpg%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.planetminecraft.com%252Fblog%252Fcake-is-a-lie-wallpaper-1920x1080-res%252F%3B1280%3B720).

[silviarambles]

You know, your description of Amy made me laugh because I was exactly like that as a child. I'm not sure you want to know that I haven't changed much over the years... XD

[cp.livejournal.com]

Ha! Like I said, I can only imagine that these are traits which will serve her well as she gets older. I wish I was even half as determined and focused as she often is! Not to mention her negotiating skills. The laws of physics and reality don't even apply when she's trying to strike a deal!

[thewayne.livejournal.com]

Have you taken a look at Humble Bundle.com? They always have an inexpensive game package up, and possibly currently have a Square Zenix(?) one up that has some Tomb Raider in it.

[cp.livejournal.com]

Oh yes, Humble Bundle has seen quite a few of my dollars over the years. I suppose the fact that it also supports charity makes it easier to talk myself into. The problem is that at this point, I usually already have at least one of the games in each bundle. Like the Square Enix one, there are several titles in there I would like, but I already have a bunch of them, so that makes it less of a deal. But it's for charity! :)

[cp.livejournal.com]

But I did see they have all Square Enix games on sale, even ones not in the bundle. So I snagged a couple more Tomb Raider titles for $2 each. And Dungeon Siege 2, because what the heck.

The Steam spring sale will be coming soon too, and that is dangerous. Or wait, maybe it's summer. Anyway, dangerous when it comes. :)

[audamy.livejournal.com]

That sort of tenacity and stubbornness is definitely hard in a child but I can attest that it does serve you well as an adult. I was a very stubborn (and some would say difficult) child but as I got older I think that I sort of evened out a bit. I'm definitely still stubborn but even now I'm always learning how to balance that out in my dealings with other people. It has definitely served me well in some ways though because I feel like I've managed to accomplish some things just because it didn't occur to me that a different outcome could be possible.

[cp.livejournal.com]

I think that's a good way to put it--she refuses to acknowledge or accept that there's any outcome except the one she wants. :) I recognize that part of it is just that she needs to learn to control her emotions and responses, and we do what we can to redirect her or get it off of her mind. Lately the trick seems to be, when she wants some item RIGHT NOW, we put it on a running list of items she wants, and then she seems to be able to let it go and move on. Anyway, it's good to hear from someone with a similar mindset. If any of our kids will go on to be President or something, it'll be her!