Day 1198. Today I had to set my alarm for 8 am; of course Emmy was already up at that time. After breakfast we cleaned them up and dressed them and left the house just after 9 am to take the 9:20 train. After the train, we still had to ride the tram for quite some time. Sammy is now obsessed with pushing the buttons on the train that open the doors, and he wants to constantly push them. If you don't let him, he cries. I let him push the button on the tram, but every time you push it beeps. A man nearby started complaining, so I pulled Sammy away and tried to explain to him that some people are disturbed by the noise. He was not happy, to say the least.
We got off the train and walked to the building, where the old swimming pool is located. It was a cold and windy and wet day. We took the elevator up, chose two cabins and started changing. Then we went downstairs to where the little, hot sauna pool was. We showered and then sat down on the side of the pool to wait for the previous class to end and our class to start.
Last week our kids were the only ones in the class. Today the twins were there as well. We had a fun class. She had them do a lot of swimming on their own, picking up balls and bringing them to a bowl, and picking up ornaments and putting them on the Christmas tree. All three swim pretty well now. Today I noticed how fast Emmy is in the water. As for Tammy, she is really laid back and swims like it's the most natural thing she's always done. Sammy is now more relaxed as well, which means that his mouth does not go as often under water, and so he can swim better and longer. They really did not do much else today; just jumping off the float and diving. Emmy still refused to dive today, but said he would next time.
The 50 minutes were over quickly. We showered off and changed back into our street clothes. Then we put their coats and shoes back on and left to cross the street to have lunch at McDonald's. We got a good table, placed our order, and sat down to eat. We were having lots of fun. Then the kids were eager to go ride the caroussel, which they did. Emmy and Tammy chose the tea cup once again, while Sammy sat in the batmobil. Tammy and Emmy were laughing the whole time it was going round and round. Then they went back into the strollers and we took the subway, then another subway. They were watching videos, while Sammy was pushing buttons whenever possible (the old trains don't have buttons).
We arrived home at 1 pm. The kids went to bed right away for a much needed nap. I sat down by them and left once the boys were asleep, but Tammy wasn't yet. I did not turn my computer on but soon lay down to sleep myself. Unfortunately I was woken up several times just as I was falling asleep, which was annoying. In the end Randy went downstairs with the kids, and I could get that much-needed sleep. At 3:30 I got up as I needed to get some things done in the one hour I had left. Randy hadn't closed the gate, though, and Emmy kept coming upstairs until I closed the gate which upset him.
Just before 4:30 pm we all left the house. Tammy and Emmy had their weekly music/piano class, and as Sammy gets very upset when he has to stay home with Daddy by himself, they came along, like they had done last week. We got to the music school downtown just before the class started at 5 pm. I handed in their Christmas presents for the Christmas Party on Sunday without them noticing, while Randy was taking their coats off. Then we went into the classroom. While they had been the only ones in class last week, today there were three other children there, the most I had ever seen. Randy, Sammy and I sat down in the back, while the other kids sat down on the floor with their teacher. He asked them about what they were wearing, what was on their shirts, and the color they were. Then he did a greeting song before getting into teaching. Randy and I kept busy with trying to keep Sammy happy. He saw the guitars on the wall and wanted one, which was not gonna happen. He hammered on the turned-off keyboard a little bit, and we got our phones out for him to play with, which he doesn't like doing for long. He had his horsey with him, so he played with it somewhat.
The teacher did some songs with the kids, and had them sit down at the tables. He gave them a hand chart and did a song, where they needed to wiggle specific fingers. It's still hard for them. I helped Emmy, while Randy helped Tammy. However, they did not behave very well today, and often did not want to do what they were supposed to. Tammy kept hugging and holding her brother and wrestling him to the ground.
The teacher also had them get their books out and talked about low, middle and high notes, but didn't go on from there. He also reviewed the different lengths of notes and had them color in quarter notes in their books. He did some songs, where they were supposed to clap or not clap, then he gave them rattles and drums to do the same, but the kids just did what they wanted with the instruments. In the end, he told them a story with the felt board again, and I put Sammy on the floor so he could watch and listen as well. Then he did a good-bye song and the class was over.
We put their coats and shoes back on and left to go back home. I was somewhat exhausted from trying to encourage them to behave and participate, as well as trying to keep Sammy happy. So there were no videos for them to watch on the way home. We got home at 6:30, and I went straight to work in the kitchen, making their dinner. Sammy was sitting by the light switch, turning it off and on, while Tammy and Emmy were playing with the big, empty box and having great fun. At 7 pm we sat down to eat, then they continued eating in the bathtub. Then we got them out and ready for bed. I was so worn out that I could not take much more drama, but they pushed me to my limits. We opened the advent calendars and read the stories inside, then I prayed for them and put them to bed. That's the short version, without the drama parts. It was later than usual, when I sat down by their beds. I was glad, when Randy took my place after having eaten, so that I could go to the kitchen and make my salad. At 9:30 I sat down to eat myself. Sammy had been the last one to fall asleep as late as 9:15. After having eaten, I started working on today's pictures. Now 1 am is approaching, and I still have to clean up the kitchen.
