On our last flight home from Wisconsin, we sat behind a couple with a young boy, a bit younger than Avery, and a newborn. (The dad handed me a voucher for a free drink before the flight started; I think as an apology for what might come. I had a Bailey’s.) The baby did pretty well, but for much of the long flight the mom stood in the aisle rocking him and saying “shush” repeatedly. I couldn’t help but think back to only a few years ago, when I was in that woman’s place – the only difference being that I would be in the bathroom holding one of the fussy girls and bouncing up and down like crazy.

As nostalgic as I get about the past, I was happy to feel not an ounce of envy that night. I’ve been stressed out over crying babies too many times, and I’m happy to have hit the easy-to-fly stage with the girls, who spent the entire flight reading and playing games (Zoe) and watching shows and playing on one of our phones (Avery). When it comes to flying with babies, I’ve been there, done that – and I’m glad those days are over!

-M

Two short videos of the girls’ snowy play. I like the way Avery asks to go faster in the second…

-M

When we went to Madison last December, there was no snow. Not so this year, when it was extremely wintery during our visit! It was too cold for the girls to go outside for most of our trip, but they spent a few minutes running around and even sledding on our last day.

-M

A few pictures from our time in Madison – including an evening out with Cousins Tanner and Brock. (Not pictured: Aunt Sandy’s dog, Coco, who the girls also spent a lot of time with. Avery even read to him!)

-M

As mentioned earlier, we went to Wisconsin for a few days to spend time with family. And, as many readers already know, our travels were just awful. Our flight from Minneapolis to Madison was first delayed for two hours, then outright cancelled – and it was only because of Q’s persistence and hard work (of course) that we were able to actually get to Wisconsin that evening. (The only way to get to Madison after the cancelled flight was to fly into Milwaukee, then take the 1.5-hour trip by car. We wound up arriving at my parents’ house seven hours later than we should have.) On the way home yesterday, too, we dealt with three cancellations – before finally getting home four hours later than we were supposed to. Oh, and Delta also misplaced our luggage on our way there – delivering it to us almost 24 hours after we arrived in Madison.

The experience was one of the worst I’ve had – though given how much I’ve traveled over the last 15 years ago, I guess I’m lucky that we haven’t had worse days. And while I was really unhappy, the girls were totally fine – not minding having to spend so much time in the Minneapolis airport on Saturday, and oblivious to the fact that we got home so late last night. Our adventures created some funny memories, too – the best being when we saw the car that Delta sent for us to get from Milwaukee to Madison on Saturday night. It wasn’t just a car – but a stretch limo, the first the girls have ever been in. “It’s so long!” Avery exclaimed as she got in, and both girls loved the lights. As I told Q after we all settled in, “This ride almost makes up for our hellish day. Almost.”

-M

We found ourselves in a touristy part of the city for a birthday party recently, and we took some time to soak up what people come from all over the world to see here. I quite like this picture of Zoe, who was taken by the sweeping views of the Bay…

-M

Q spends most Sundays during the fall watching football, but that doesn’t mean he’s not spending time with the kids. A few Sundays ago, for example, he settled in to watch the game while also visiting the girls’ hair and nail salon. Football season may soon be done, but my memories of this will linger!

-M

Avery still takes the occasional weekend nap – but when Q tried to get her to sleep one recent Sunday afternoon, she was having none of it. She chose instead to march her new Frozen figurines up and down her (tired) daddy’s face…

-M

It was extremely (and unusually) cold here for about a week, and when Avery saw frost on the playground at school one morning, she didn’t know what it was. (“What’s frost?” she asked when I pointed it out.) And then at the zoo the other night, she got a taste of what snow looks like – though what was being shot through the air there was actually tiny bubbles, made to look like flakes. She’ll soon get to see the real stuff, though – as we head to Madison to see Grandma and Grandpa!

-M

The girls and I are officially on vacation: No school or work for 16 days! During “morning meeting” at school this week, Avery and her classmates were asked to think of things they wanted to do during their break. Avery, her teachers report, had this to say: “I want to go to the park in San Francisco. I want to play ‘baby’ with my sister. I am going to go ice skating.”

-M

The baby is four and a half today! Here’s a rundown of what she’s like…

Interests: Avery’s favorite thing to do is “dramatic play” – playing school or restaurant or family; she loves pretending she’s a mommy and taking care of her various dolls. (The other morning she even played a mommy-to-be – stuffing something in her shirt and telling me with a proud smile, “I’m pregnant!”) When she’s not playing make-believe at home, she’s following her sister around or dancing and singing. She’s gotten very into princesses over the last year; for a long time her favorite was Cinderella, but she’s now totally taken with the characters of the new movie Frozen. She has seen it twice and now constantly acts out scenes and sings songs from the movie. If it ever becomes a musical I know who we’re taking!

School life: I asked Avery the other day if she liked school and she looked at me like I was crazy. “I love school,” she told me. Indeed, the teachers report that she’s very happy there, and Avery is constantly coming home and singing songs she’s learned there. She also remains extremely close with her best friend, Sofia; her teachers told us that if she could, she would spend the whole day with Sofia in the dress-up area of school.

Developmental stuff: I was surprised (and happy) to read that much of I wrote of Zoe at this age applies to Avery: “She has been able to write letters and her first and last name for some time now, and she can also spell/write numerous short words (e.g. cat, dog, love) and the names of family members and some friends… For the past several months, she has asked the meaning of words that she hears and doesn’t yet know.” Indeed, Avery is often asking, “What does that mean?” Avery, like her sister before her, likes doing simple math games, and I love the look of pride when she gets when she gets something right. (“Two and two is four, Mommy.”)

Temperament: During Avery’s recent kindergarten assessment, we were told that she was “quiet and serious.” I had to stifle a laugh when I heard that, as we know a very different side of her. At home, she’s our wild child – always running around, laughing, acting goofy and sometimes getting in trouble. She likes being silly – like the other day, when she looked in my nose, laughed and said, “I can see your brain!” At school she also apparently likes to avoid conflict (so the teachers say) but not at home! She has been known to lash out at people when upset; when Zoe angered her one night, Avery screamed (in a high-pitched yet powerful voice), “YOU’RE A BABY, ZOE!” She can also be sassy with us: Q was disciplining her in a store one day and had to tell her several times to come to come to him. “I AM over to you,” she said in an exasperated voice. “It’s not like I’m on the street or something.” With that said, and as written about here before, she has a sweet side – often telling us (out of the blue) that she loves us and doing little things just to make me happy.

Other goodies: She’s about 47 pounds and 45 inches, and she loves talking about her “growth spurts.” Taller than even some of Zoe’s classmates, she likes to hang out with the “big kids” – and she does it quite well. (I was curious how she’d handle being around 11 rowdy first-graders at her sister’s birthday – but she acted just like one of them!) She still claims to not like boys, though she’s a huge fan of Zoe’s buddy Zachary (I think it’s a crush) and also Sofia’s twin brother at school. She’s great at bedtime these days, asking only that we lay next to her when we turn out the lights. And each night, without fail, when we get up to leave she asks us to stay “just a little bit longer.” And, still, we do!

An end-of-the-year present came for Zoe in the mail yesterday. It was from her (unbelievably amazing) teacher, who had included a card that said, “I love your beautiful smile, bright mind, kind and caring heart, and fantastic sense of humor.” But it was a quote on the card – a Winnie the Pooh one – that really got to me. “You’re braver than you believe, and stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think,” it said. That’s a message I want my girls to always remember!

-M

Last week, Avery had a “playdate” at her sister’s school, where she was assessed for kindergarten readiness by several of the teachers there. This part of the admissions process was mostly a formality, but it was still fun to get the call from the director today: Everything went well, and Avery is officially part of the incoming kindergarten class. Though I tend to get emotional over the girls’ milestones, and the fact that my babies are growing so fast, I wasn’t at all sad today – just really excited!

-M

I’m a sucker for lights, so I was really excited when I heard the zoo was going to have its “zoo lights” event again this year. We recently met up with friends to check it (and the zoo’s new ice-themed playground) out; here are some pics.

-M

As mentioned below, being sick is no fun. But the good thing about being sick with older kids is that they can help out! When I first started feeling really bad (with Q still at work) one night, Zoe was great – making dinner and even putting Avery and herself to bed. I was so grateful and told her so many times, but she wanted something more: She “charged” me, asking for two of the coupons she made for my birthday. (Totally worth it!!)

-M