Jammin with Julie, Coffee, Errands

We started the day off by seeing the drive-through teller at Midwest Bank to make both deposits personal and deposits for CFC. The Boy was not happy about sitting in the car for 20 minutes while I took care of my business, but he changed his tune when the teller enclosed three sets of lollies for the kids. Our main bank is out-of-state, but I've been so pleased with how incredibly nice the folks at Midwest Bank are, I bring them my local banking business.

The Tot and I started the new session of Jammin with Julie today. Oddly enough, The Girl chose to skip preschool, go to the full day of MDO, and come along to music class with us. With only The Boy to drop off at school, we made it to music class well in advance of its 9 a.m. start time, which is a departure from our usual method, which is to arrive 5 minutes late and try not to disrupt the flow of the class.

While The Girl is tall and looked Amazonian next to all the 1-2-year-olds, even The Tot looked big against the newest crop of babies in the class. It's weird to think of him at the older end of the age range. When I asked him if he wanted to jam with Julie, he nodded vigorously, which is amazing for a child whose standard response to any question is, "no." He listened with rapt attention, tried to touch the animal-puppets, helpfully put away the shakers, chased bubbles, and didn't want to go at the end of class. To me (and I think to Miss Julie), this means that music class is a success!

You, too, can Jam with Julie in the neighborhood (at Irving Park Lutheran Church) on Wednesdays and Fridays, now through April 22, 2009. Call Julie Helenius directly at 773-267-7607 or e-mail her at jtjujubee@aol.com. The 16-week session is $192, which represents a bit of a price break over the Old Town School's Wiggleworms classes ($240 for a 16-week session), which are similar to Julie's classes.

After music class, we schlepped over to CFC so The Girl could play with her friends, attend another music class (this time with Ms. Andrea, whose instrument of choice is a viola), and practice writing letters. Meanwhile, I spent the first hour of MDO visiting with my friends, drinking coffee, eating muffins and trying to divert The Tot from nursing.*

We ran to Target to buy a new iron and ran into a mom from The Boy's school as well as Becky and Baby G. The Tot had great fun helping me push the buttons on the elevator, pick out storage bins for The Dad, and eat Sour Airheads. Then we went home, had lunch, and he took a nap.





* It has been 20+ months and I'm still nursing this kid! I am a fan of breastfeeding and even extended breastfeeding, but this is ridiculous. Chicago is pretty pro-breastfeeding, even more than it was when The Boy was a baby, but nursing a 6-month-old in public is understandable and even cute. Nursing a gigantic toddler? Notsomuch (for me).

Jammin with Julie

Yesterday, I asked The Tot if he wanted to jam with Julie. He nodded "yes" very enthusiastically. We got there for the tail end of the 10 a.m. class and stayed for the beginning of the 11 a.m. class. The Tot was very participatory in the classes, which is extremely unusual for him, but Miss Julie commented that she was happy to see it!

This week marks the end of the fall session, but you can sign up for the next session, held January 7 - April 22, 2009 at Irving Park Lutheran Church, by calling Julie Helenius directly at 773-267-7607 or e-mailing her at jtjujubee@aol.com. The 16-week session is $192, which represents a bit of a price break over the Old Town School's Wiggleworms classes ($240 for a 16-week session), which are similar to Miss Julie's classes.

Around the Neighborhood

I miss going to museums. These days, we've been sticking close to home. Between The Girl's preschool day and The Tot's nap time, there just isn't a lot of time to go anywhere. In the mornings, while The Girl is in preschool and The Boy is at school, The Tot and I go to thrift stores (last week, I got a fantastic, solid wood credenza [to use as a media stand] for $35), run errands, putter around the house, go to the park, drink coffee at Starbucks, and jam with Julie.

Friday

I've been spending a lot more time at home lately. I don't know if it's scheduling (always have to drop off or pick up some little person) or the price of gas ($4.50/gallon -- eek!) or something else, but I can't seem to find the time/motivation to go on many excursions with the kids of late.

Today, we jammed with Julie in the morning. Although The Girl initially wanted to stay for the second class, when she saw all of her friends leaving after the first class, she changed her mind. The Baby was in desperate need of a nap and was taking chunks out of my shoulder with his teeth, so we skedaddled at the start of the second class. But not before I had a chance to catch up quickly with Lynn A., who runs the OIPA parents' committee, sits on the Belding LSC, and has generally been very helpful on the schools front. She's also a fellow Illini alum. Her son and The Girl are the same age.

Caroline D. called to tell me that her son moved out of his #2 slot on the waitlist for Disney II and had been accepted. Hooray! I hope this means that the #1 slot holder also got in; if so, The Boy will know at least four other kids next year. It's certainly not a requirement to know someone before K, but it will ease the transition for my slow-to-transition Boy. Also, I got an e-mail this evening saying that The Girl has been accepted into the free/state pre-K at Disney II. She will be thrilled. She has been quite upset that she doesn't get to go to Disney until she's 5, which seems a long time away when you've only just turned 3.

I unwisely look three kids with me to Sears to pick up a new rotator belt. We also checked out digicams, washing machines, and refrigerators. The Baby was very interested in the bank of TVs showing music videos. He kept wandering over there at every opportunity.

On the way home, we saw a giant white Dunkin Donuts inflatable cup hooked to the top of the new Mobil station at Irving Park Road and Pulaski Avenue. The Boy and The Girl and I speculated that its presence means the Dunkin Donuts/gas station is opening soon. We are very excited about this prospect. If a mom & pop donuts-and-coffee shop opened, we'd gladly give our business to them, but if we can only get chains, we'll take what we can get in this neighborhood.

Bongo Girl

The stars aligned this morning, allowing The Girl and I to make it to Jammin' with Julie's Advanced Music class. As we were walking in, she said, "I hope Hanna is there!" And she could even specify which Hanna she meant when I explained that there were three in the class. None of them were there, although several other familiar faces were there. The Girl does really well in this class; she isn't the annoying, pushy kid in the front, and she isn't the kid who refuses to participate, but she is a good student, in my opinion. She is enthusiastic and responsive without dominating.

Other than that, we stuck close to home again today.

The Girl fell asleep in the afternoon, and since The Dad worked from home, I left her napping while I got The Boy from school. I took him and The Baby to Starbucks after school for a little boys-Mama playdate. The Boy told me about his day (chasing Caitlin, a kindergartener) around the playground, while The Baby sat up nicely in his chair at the table, impressing the people at the next table over. We played a bit outside on the sidewalk before getting into the car again.