Where the Wild Things Are is one of our very favorite books, read over and over without complaint every time one of the kids climbs into my lap with our well-loved copy. Evan can recite most of the story by heart and shouts all of Max’s lines with the enthusiasm of a child who really understands what a wild rumpus means.

It’s a beautiful story, so beautiful some nights I can barely get through it without choking up. I hope my kids always have amazing, heartbreaking, wild adventures but remember to come home for good things to eat in the end.

Sometimes a wolf suit is all you need for an adventure in your own little yard. Well, a wolf suit, an apple box from BJ’s and a little imagination. Two dowels, an old pillow case and a gallon jug full of sand for a sail doesn’t hurt, but mother nature can provide all the extras you need to turn your box in a private boat.

In a month full of new toys and big trips and dollars spent on experiences and cider donuts and candy and costumes, it’s nice to remember 3 year olds don’t need much to be happy. Just a place where someone loves them best of all.

Costume from PBKids

My poor baby. She didn’t even make it to her second year without breaking something, although the good news is it doesn’t seem to be slowing her down. I had to pin her to my chest with both arms during gymnastics on Wednesday because all she wanted to do was jump off of everything, hang off of everything and throw herself into the big pit of foam blocks. She is 99% affected already and it hasn’t even been a week. There’s a rather large bump on her collar bone that I am hoping disappears on its own, otherwise she’ll never be a collar bone model and obviously that would be tragic.

Things are on hold a little bit while she heals, but we’re keeping busy with quiet play dates – although the aforementioned insistence on jumping/climbing/running is making them a little less quiet. So far at least we’ve managed to avoid playgrounds. Caroline doesn’t seem to mind, especially since one of our play dates brought purple sparkle play dough and she is OBSESSED. (Well, technically she bought white, pink and blue sparkle play dough, but it is currently one big lovely lump of lavender.)

Let’s talk about how the accident clearly hasn’t affected her smarts. Caroline has the very best memory of any baby I have ever seen. She regularly (as in, every 5 minutes) asks about her friends James and Owen who we went to Sesame Place with a month ago. She can identify all of her grandparents by their photos even though we don’t see them very often. On Sunday I told her we could go to the zoo on Monday and she said “Aoudads?????” What kind of one year old remembers aoudads instead of giraffes or elephants? Although to be fair she remembers those too. I kept her awake for the entire hour car ride home from the zoo naming animals we had seen.

She is still small – most of her 18 month stuff is still big and she’s swimming in 2T. It means she has more clothes than any child could ever possible need (and today I found a full box of 18 month stuff in the attic I have literally no memory of receiving and/or putting up there). Bless all of you lovely people who sent us hand-me-downs. You won’t even believe the cuteness of the little red swing coat Harper sent us and it’s only made EVEN CUTER because Caroline loves to say “Arper! Arper!” She has a plethora of shoes as well, but insists on ONLY wearing her pink sparkle shoes because, duh, sparkles.

Caroline’s favorite things include cheese, strawberries, cereal, eggs, bacon, stealing my eggs and bacon, dogs, animals, play dough, coloring (on herself), children’s pain relievers, talking like a pirate, watching Disney shows on my phone, friends, dancing, Yo Gabba Gabba, fruit snacks, pointing at things, trying to drink my coffee, books* and her brother.

Least favorite things include CAT scans, being really really tired, Lara Bars, not being allowed to jump off of high things, not being allowed to watch shows on my phone, not getting her way immediately, having her hair brushed, and being pushed off of playground equipment.

Today you get 21 photos because she in 21 months and also because I couldn’t narrow it down to any less because I love her so much I think they are all the very cutest picture of her ever. No THAT one’s the cutest. No THAT one. HERE JUST LOOK AT ALL OF THEM.

*pictures feature all of Caroline’s current favorites: Where The Wild Things Are, The Sailor Dog, Llama Llama Red Pajama, Mike Mulligan And His Steam Shovel and Baby Beluga.

21 Month Milestones (from BabyCenter, as usual)

Mastered Skills (most kids can do)
Can walk up stairs – Don’t even THINK about trying to help her.
Able to set simple goals (e.g., deciding to put a toy in a certain place) – The goals Caroline sets are more like “see how many times I can make my mom button and unbutton my shirt today before she loses her mind” or “pretend my shoulder hurts so I get another popsicle but then jump up and down on the couch with it laughing”. I’m just hoping none of her goals involve selling her brother for more play-dough.

Emerging Skills (half of kids can do)
Throws a ball overhand – Only if she’s aiming at someone’s face.
Kicks ball forward – Only if she’s aiming at someone’s face. Or crotch.
Stacks six blocks – No comment. But also, yes.

Advanced Skills (a few kids can do)
Names simple picture in a book – She can name all the animals in Baby Beluga, including “harbor seal”, “narwhal”, and “puffin”.
Can walk down stairs – Don’t you even THINK about trying to help her. Although really you have to a little because she’s so short her legs aren’t really long enough for stairs.

This is my haul from two separate shopping days in the past couple weeks. Actually, the flea market was a “shopping day” but the garage sale was “30 minutes of chasing two kids around a school gymnasium while also shopping”. Whatever you call it, I was pretty please with my finds.

First, the Jewett City Flea Market:

Total cost: $7

Metal Tonka fire truck
3 Little Golden Books
Chinese Checkers board

Printed in 1939!

I replaced three little white plates with the fun board and I love it! I can still take it down to play :)

That Chinese Checkers board was a super lucky find. I grabbed from the floor in front of a booth and asked the lady in charge how much she wanted literally 20 seconds before a guy came running up saying “Whoa! That’s so cool! It’s a collector’s item! It’s old and in such good shape!” He went on and on about how it might be valuable until I said “I’ll give you an extra dollar for it if you want” but the lady told me she got it for free somewhere so she didn’t care.

And this is what I found at a giant indoor garage sale at the local charter school on Saturday:

Total: $4.50

Three milk glass vases (for my collection!)
Two children’s books
Vintage short sleeved baby sweater
CAT digger toy
1973 edition of BH&G Baby Book

This digger lights up and makes sounds too!

Once I get a chance to read this, I'll share some of the "best" advice. (Sample: Your husband should just go back to the office while you're in labor, since it's going to take a long time.)

Dear Mr. Sendak, for others, we say rest in peace. For you, we say let the wild rumpus start!  Thank you for everything.

All written and/or illustrated by Maurice Sendak - All well-loved

Evan and Caroline love this book - I'm going to get "Everywhere is music" as part of my tattoo for Caroline

Most of these books are from my own childhood. Some are hand-me-downs from my mother’s. And today I ordered the rest of the Nutshell Library and Higglety Pigglety Pop from Amazon, since there is no such thing as too many Maurice Sendak books in a child’s library.

It’s probably a good thing going to Goodwill with two toddlers is practically impossible, since I have a little bit of a thrift store/yard sale/flea market addiction. I used to have a Livejournal (ha!) dedicated to my flea market shopping trips, but hopefully it’s been lost in the interwebs and I can’t bore you to death with the five hundred useless cut-glass candy dishes I bought for a nickel. But I CAN show you the stuff I bought at Goodwill last weekend when I was on a childless errand-running spree.

I went specifically looking for plain cloth tablecloths for Evan’s party and spring/summer baby clothes. Obviously I struck out on the tablecloths but I still think it was a pretty successful trip.

Besides having a kid’s name in the front, this dino pop-up book was in PERFECT condition. Amazing, since within 2 hours my kids had already ripped two of the dinosaurs. I think I’ll put in on the “read with mommy quietly” shelf. The Babar book is vintage – 1960’s – and also in great condition. I bought it more for me than the kids, since I love Babar.

The glass thing is a fishbowl I’m using as a terrarium for Evan’s birthday party decorations. The red and white checked thing is a tablecloth I’m going to keep in the car for picnics and playing at the park so we don’t end up eating lunch on my yoga mat. And the little girl dresses, well…

This one is obviously hand made – it has little bloomers underneath too. It’s going to be perfect for summer time outside playing.

The print on the fabric AND kitty cat buttons? I die. Caroline kept saying “Keetteee!!”

This last thing is cheating a little, since I didn’t exactly thrift it…

The house across the street from ours has a steady stream of short term renters who move in and out and they’re always having yard sales/leaving stuff by the curb. This was out for the trash a couple weeks ago so I rescued it.

As part of a dining room set it wouldn’t be my style at all, but one chair mixed with my other single chairs in the living room is eclectic. I might repaint it something fun – yellow? pink? – and find it a home upstairs some day, but since it was zero dollars I’m just happy to have another place to sit.

Even E – who DREADS seeing stuff by the curb because I’m always shouting “STOP THE CAR! I need to go through the trash!” – admitted this was an acceptable acquisition. Hooray for thrifting!