• At the Outsourcer, N.Lo is getting used to the routine. He “transitions” better between activities, doesn’t cry (as much) at drop-off. Is actually playing when I pick him up instead of lurking on the fringes. His teachers say he doesn’t actually play with the toys too much during free-play, but always wants to help clean up. They say there’s always one kid who actually likes helping, and that’s him. That’s my boy.

• He’s had a lingering cold with a cough for over a week now. Sheesh.

• He must be growing again. In addition to the falls, trips, spills, bruises, cuts, and bumps, he is sleeping more. Although that could be the cold as well. For the past three nights, he’s fallen asleep before bedtime, and tonight he fell asleep before dinner. Aw. Every time I change his PJs and put him to bed, and he doesn’t stir.

• He’s talking more, not necessarily in a more advanced way, but in a chattier way. He volunteers more information.

• He’s on a “good guys” and “bad guys” kick and it’s interesting to see how he assigns those two roles. In a surlier mood, he’ll say about himself, “I’m not going to do that because I’m BAD.” Hmm. He hasn’t picked up that descriptor at the Lo.Co.

• In the car the other day, he very carefully pieced together a question: “Mommy, why is the sky blue?” Huh. Kids really ask that.

Headed down the hall with a broom.

• N.Lo has been training in the Employee Rest Room pretty much every afternoon while at the office. Still no pants. The Manager wonders when we’ll be able to make that transition, but otherwise, he seems to get it. Proud! He likes to be called a “rock star” for any successes.

• K.Lo loves to push some buttons, particularly at the end of the day when it is cleanup time. Management is kind with instructions and reminders until about the 5th time, when our tone shifts. The other evening, she lost use of her Candy Land and I Spy games for hiding in the closet instead of picking them up and putting them away. K.Lo, K.Lo… come on. We don’t ask much. However, the Manager found her comment a few mornings later very interesting: “I’m not going to play with toys in my room today, because I don’t want to clean them up later.” Hmmm.

• K.Lo has really clicked with bike riding (with training wheels, anyway) and rides circles and circles and more circles around the concrete area in the backyard. So fun to watch.

• For some reason, both employees demand cheese every morning from the Kitchen Staff. “Don’t forget the cheese!” Mozza sticks and cheddar are the favorites. Since they are healthy fare, the Kitchen Staff usually abides.

• Yesterday at the Outsourcer (also known as the Gulag), each employee made an art project with a paper plate attached to a pretend placement and ants stamped across the scene. It was to go along with “The Ants Go Marching.” Really cute stuff, but moments after I brought the projects out to the Conference Room to take a closer look, I noticed a ginormous ant of reddish hue on the couch arm, as though it had materialized straight from the art. So weird. I hope it didn’t have friends.

• The other day at Exercise Place (EP), the ladies informed me that K.Lo played guitar and sang to everyone for about an hour. That’s my girl.

• K.Lo loves a particular commercial on TV – ironically for feminine products – where a woman strides down the staircase and out the door, shedding layers of fashionable clothing. “She has so many clothes!” Today (keeping in mind it was upper 90s, free of the heat index), she donned no less than 3 dresses and a tank top. And a jump rope necklace. And a plastic drum for a hat, temporarily. When I picked her up from EP, she was wearing just two dresses, and promptly asked for one more (which was around her waist only) to be removed. Kind of like the commercial, over a 2-hour time span.

• N.Lo, picking up cues from his coworker, shouts “What?!” in response to, “N.Lo!” Also, I’ve heard him saying, “WhatEVer,” mostly to himself. Good thing. :)

• Today, neither employee cried at drop-off to the Outsourcer. I won’t say it’s not going to happen ever again, but today, it was pleasant. Refreshing.
• N.Lo has a chair at the Outsourcer that anchors him. It’s green. He sits there now at drop-off and will often be sitting there when I pick him up. It’s his Safe Place. I’m not arguing.
• He doesn’t like to talk much about his day there. He might insist that he cried or didn’t have fun, even if it’s not true. When asked about his friends’ names, he thinks a bit and says, “Umm… something.” K.Lo usually offers so much information without us asking and has to be told to pipe down if we want to ask N.Lo anything at all. Funny to see the differences in personalities.
• We’ve been training here and there with the Employee Rest Room. N.Lo sometimes cares, sometimes doesn’t. He can’t really wear pants to train, not yet. Yesterday, I intended on some afternoon training, but instead he fell asleep on the Conference Room floor. Pants-less.
• K.Lo lately likes her My Little Pony’s hair to be scented… I don’t know where this came from. But, I’ll spray some scenty stuff from Bath & Body Works there, and she seems satisfied. She’ll tell everyone she sees, “Smell my pony’s hair, doesn’t it smell so good?” Today, N.Lo had a bit of an accident on one of the ponies, and K.Lo said, “Oh no! My pony doesn’t smell good anymore?” Unfortunately, it didn’t.
• K.Lo likes to say things like, “Mommy, I’m a big girl now! I can hang my clothes in the closet, and pour my own juice, and…”
• She really can pour her own juice. This involves pulling the big juice container down from the counter, unscrewing the cap, pouring just a little bit, replacing the cap, and filling the rest of the cup with water. She taught herself. After so many years of filling a seemingly endless parade of juice cups, Management nearly fainted.
• Also, she’s transitioned, for the time being, to calling Management “Mom” and “Dad,” instead of “Mommy” and “Daddy.” I feel it’s too soon.
• The CEO is working extra (temporarily) at his Other Job, so he’s gone in the morning at the start of the Day Shift. The employees say, “Where’s Daddy?” when they wake up, followed by, “But I forgot to give him a kiss.” It’s a little sad.
• When Management asks N.Lo to complete a certain task, he often likes to say, “No,” followed by, “Never!” – which he punctuates by stabbing the air overhead with his pointer finger.

A “negative space” picture drawn by K.Lo on our company excursion last week.

N.Lo shucks some corn while wearing his coworker’s rain boots.

K.Lo, presenting Leaf Frog Art, created today at the Outsourcer by both employees.

N.Lo does not love the Outsourcer. The first day, he made it through like a champ, whereas K.Lo cried because it was a new room with new teachers for the “summer camp” season. The second day, K.Lo was just fine, but it began to dawn on N.Lo that this drop-off business was going to be a regular thing, and he cried. A lot. He does okay if he has his blankie, and the teachers don’t mind that he has his blankie, but it’s still kind of painful for all. On Day 3, both N.Lo and K.Lo cried, and I left the building feeling like a measly Manager.

N.Lo is used to drop-off at Exercise Place and our church nursery – but he is always in the company of his coworker. It’s interesting to see just how dependent he’s become on his coworker… more in an endearing way than anything. But it will be good for him to stand on his own two feet. On Day 3, I was actually asked whether they should just push through the tears and keep him there (oh dear – is it that bad?) or call me to come get him. It’s a pain for all, but I advised to push through. Otherwise, he’ll learn if he cries enough, he doesn’t have to stay – as opposed to opening up to the experience and eventually having a good time like his sister.

On the way home from Day 3, I tried asking N.Lo about his teachers and his day to get him talking about it all, and he said, “Um. I want K.Lo to talk.” Huh! He knows he can hide behind her chattiness!

Now, of course, N.Lo is crying at Exercise Place dropoff, too. Sigh.

On to more positive news! Courtesy of the Regional Manager, N.Lo was provided with a new pack of undies and on Sunday, K.Lo suggested he wear them after his bath. He was all excited about the prospect, so we went with it, and had several successes in the Employee Rest Room. Go, N.Lo! After three accidents, however, we quit for the day. I think he was getting tired of the whole process, and I don’t want to push the issue, especially with the Outsourcer goings-on. We are not in a hurry.

Our company celebrated CEO’s Day yesterday – Yay for the CEO! He is the best ever, and we couldn’t dream of a better one to head up our company. We set up a new digital frame – replacing the one for his office that broke – loaded up with 2010 company photos, as well as cards the employees had made at the Outsourcer. And while he slept in, the rest of the company went to the grocery store to procure some important items, such as donuts, bacon (to go with bacon and eggs) and steak for dinner. We arrived home just in time for the CEO’s clock-out from the Night Shift, and the employees ran down the hall to see him. K.Lo said, “Happy Father’s Day, Daddy! I love you!” And N.Lo said, “Happy Father’s Day WE GOT YOU STEAK!” Yes, that was all one sentence. One highly awesome sentence.

The employees learned (somewhere…) to say “Girls rule and boys drool!” and the patently false vice versa. The coworkers compete, usually in the cafeteria, with their respective phrases, and N.Lo struggles to piece his together because he’s so anxious to get to the subsequent “YEAH!” and fist pump.

K.Lo still fawns over Bailey and calls her the favorite, because she’s cute and sweet and cuddly. Whereas Bender is grumpy and growls. But she still loves Bender a lot. Nicknames for each of the Canine Staff are “Bailey Brownie” and “Bender Batater.”

More employee files to come.

Yesterday in a more exasperated moment, I asked K.Lo why exactly it is that she repeats requests approximately 50,000 times. Because while I can understand that this habit is half age, half personality, it doesn’t make it any less exasperating. K.Lo actually thought about it and said, “Because you don’t hear me.”

Oh.

Except, I do hear her, and I explained as much.

Then she said, “But you don’t talk.” (Meaning, you don’t respond to said request.)

Oh.

But, and I explained this to her as well, much of the time I do talk, because I know she needs verbal acknowledgement. But K.Lo’s so busy repeating that she can’t hear me. Which makes the conversation all the more exasperating.

So, I doubt the conversation will change much, but at least we each have a little insight now.

***

Other K.Lo Classics:

Friday evening after we returned home from the beach, K.Lo was cold, tired and a ball of whine. So the CEO and I teased a bit, saying something along the lines of “Boo-hoo, I went to the beach and had so much fun, so I have to cry now…” (We mean no harm. Or maybe we are actually mean.) Often it gets a smile out of her. But K.Lo wasn’t having it just then and said, “No, Daddy (and Mommy), you stop kidding me!”

Yesterday afternoon, the CEO joked with K.Lo about something or other, and she wasn’t in the mood. Her response. “Daddy, stop. You are ruining my life!” My, my. 

The CEO recently got a cut on his ankle, and K.Lo assisted with every step of recovery: bactine, band-aids, triple antibiotic ointment. She was very pleased with her work and said, “I’m a good nurse!” And she is, because she’s very gentle in her administration of said band-aids and follows up daily with patient care.

K.Lo’s idea. That’s a piece of one of those bug catchers where you trap a bug and look at it through a magnifying glass. Pretty clever, I thought!

All K.Lo:

“You’re not the bestest mommy in the whole world when you’re yelling, but when you’re happy, you’re the bestest mommy in the whole world.”

“Mommy, I forgive you.”

“You forgive me? What did I do?”

“Oh, nothing! But I forgive you.”

“My nose doesn’t have boogers. It’s empty, just like a trash can.”

“Mommy, you’re whining. I can’t hear you when you’re whining.”

“Can I have more gummies? But you said ‘yes’ to N.Lo…”

“N.Lo, the neighbors can hear you. Keep it down low.”

“Can we go to the mall? Can we go to the re-quarium? Can we go to the beach? Can we go to the museum? Can we go to the park?” Every day, there’s a new request for adventure.

“Mommy, did you finish writing your article? Oh! You did such a good job! I’m so proud of you.”

K.Lo: “YOU DON’T HAVE TO REPEAT IT A HUNDRED TIMES!” Hmm.

N.Lo: “Ugggggh.” [General grunt of frustration, mimicking coworker and possibly Management.]

N.Lo: “I don’t LIKE my blankies.” Said after denied the opportunity to greet K.Lo at the Outsourcer as planned. He likes to go down the stairs to the playground and find her. She saw us first, instead. Sadness.

After N.Lo’s first official use of the Employee Rest Room last week (no activity since), he received a sticker. So, K.Lo naturally wanted stickers again as well. Management tried to convince her it was N.Lo’s time now, and as a result, we’re back to more frequent accidents. Management kindly requests that you shoot them, now, please. We started fresh with two new potty charts, one for each employee. N.Lo is interested in the idea of stickers and special treats, but not really the potty, so much. K.Lo is happily back to getting her stickers.

Ice cream is a current office favorite.

Occasionally, the employees will try cafeteria foods they hadn’t previously tried … pudding, cereal with milk, toast with peanut butter (and raisins on top?) … K.Lo historically does not love sauces, dips, spreads, mixtures, etc., and N.Lo follows suit. So the expanded repertoire is nice.

And N.Lo’s office supply of choice has been the Lite Brite. Interestingly, he can actually pierce through the black paper, which K.Lo never mastered – and I note that because it’s not easy for grown-up hands, much less the hands of small employees.

Both employees refer to the black paper as “the mat,” which is from Dora the Explorer. Except it’s really “the map,” on the show. It’s a trickle-down translation, stemming from K.Lo’s pretending to search for things using “the mat.”

8:25 AM Wake up at Manager’s prompting. Speed-prepare for coworker’s drop-off at Outsourcer.

9:15 AM Go to Library with Manager, choose “Puff the Magic Dragon” cartoon series – which we checked out and returned last week.

9:30 AM Pick strawberries with Manager and colleague.

10:15 AM Eat strawberry ice cream independently. Wear half.

11:00 AM Return to office, firmly request to watch Barbie in the Mermaid Tale.

1:00 PM Help pick up K.Lo from Outsourcer, give 2 big hugs.

1:15 PM Go to park with the “fish bridge,” i.e. the bridge that’s shaped like a fish.

1:45 PM Attempt acrobatics on picnic table, land underneath on face. Tongue bleeds profusely.

1:55 PM Calm down at prospect of “Popsicle at home on front porch.”

2:20 PM Finish Popsicle, deliberately squish caterpillar, causing coworker to burst into tears because “now he won’t turn into a butterfly.”

2:30 PM Prepare for bath. Make use of Employee Rest Room for the first time!

2:45 PM Partially flood rest room floor with bathwater.

3:00 PM Bonk head on coffee table. Cry.

3:30 PM Nearly fly off the couch into coffee table; saved by Manager.

4:00 PM Bonk coworker in face with Weeble Wobble airplane. Refuse to apologize for 5 full minutes.

4:15 PM Pretend to make and throw snowballs at coworker and Manager, complete with “fssssh” sound effects.

5:45 PM Recount Caterpillar Incident to CEO, solemnly echoing K.Lo’s description of “green juice” coming out of the caterpillar.

7:25 PM Prepare for Night Shift. Wear Toy Story PJs with Woody Hat. Agree to place hat on pillow, like a good cowboy.

Management takes no responsibility here.

N.Lo, every night: “I love you! Sleep tight! Don’t kick the wall!” Because he does, all the time.

K.Lo, noting N.Lo’s yawn: “You’re tired, buddy. You need a nap.”

N.Lo: “No! I’m not tired! I don’t need a nap!”

K.Lo: “Yes, you are. You yawned. You’re tired and you need a nap.”

N.Lo: “No! I’m not tired! I don’t need a nap!”

Etc.

K.Lo: “Ohhhhh, Bailey. Isn’t she such a cutie, sweet dog?”

N.Lo, noting babies in the store: “Hey, that’s a cool baby.”

N.Lo, when playing with toys that light up or do other tricks: “Hey, Mommy? That’s pretty neat?”

N.Lo, about everything: “NO! I. Want. To. Do It. MYSELF!” And then he will go back and undo whatever Mgmt did, just so he can do it himself.

K.Lo: Lots of things that will not be repeated here, because they are all songs and sayings themed around potty humor. Yes, we’re at *that* phase. Fun! Especially in the cafeteria. And especially with her coworker’s participation.

K.Lo: “I’m going to ride my Jet Bubble bike!” She is referring here to N.Lo’s tricycle, which she is too big for, but rides anyway because her new bike with training wheels makes her nervous. A Jet Bubble bike is from Mario Kart Wii.

Even though his coworker will abandon him, N.Lo enjoys working on his own in the backyard (along with the Canine Staff), and he has recently discovered the trapeze. Cheese!

Us Managers often lament that we cannot even go to the Employee Rest Room in a given workday without employee issue. Usually, it is a case of employee disruption, banging on the rest room door, possibly accompanied by shouting and similar agony. Today, it was a lack of supervision (two minutes!) that led to N.Lo’s breakfast “revision.” The kid likes some marshmallows, and he doesn’t mind helping himself… Classic.

(K.Lo noted, “He poured too much!”)

The Inspector Mendacious has come to visit our company once again, and on Sunday afternoon, we took one employee/little girl to the local tea shop to see if her on-the-job training was paying off. And it was. K.Lo expertly dispensed sugar cubes in each glass and helped pour lemonade, which came in its own pot, into her cup. She was mostly dainty with setting down her cup, as well. We ordered the “Wee Tea” for the employee – the plate included a cheese sandwich in the shape of a teapot, a few pb&j sandwiches on cinnamon raisin bread, and some bite-sized desserts. I’m also told she tried the edible pansy, but I missed that part. Afterward, we walked along the river. Lovely, lovely.

Note: The only part I had in the following photo series was the camera. And helping with bathing suits. The Employees, directed by K.Lo, set up the entire scene.

Love. It.

And then, N.Lo… Where did the little song come from?? “Splash, splash! Oh, yeah, yeah!”

This shoot was initiated and staged by K.Lo. Personally, I would have staged it away from the backdrop of liquor bottles, lest Management look like they have some sort of *problem,* but regardless, we did succeed in capturing some of the employees’ energy. Needless to say, I love my munchkins.