And Then The Hurricane Came

And, we're back! ConEd decided it was time for light and there is light on Rest Avenue. Today, at about 3 pm, the power returned to the Gornstein home for the first time in almost 4 days. Of course, it wasn't the end of the world, but it really was quite annoying.

The kids did okay considering and liked walking around with flashlights. The didn't love how dark it was if they woke up at night and got scared.

Today, they were just thrilled when they flipped the light switch and it went on (which they tried doing everytime they walked in the house). They also enjoyed telling folks "we don't have electricity." And, when the ConEd/tree trucks were on the street, they smiled and said thanks.

Just a bit of background, Hurricane Irene came up the coast and hit NY. To prepare, the Gornstein's had dinner at Hurricane Grill on Friday night. It was not intentional at all, but once there, Mommy couldn't resist taking a photo! Saturday morning there was  a quick trip  the the Hasting's Farmers Market for some pickles and dancing.

The power went out at about 4 am on Sunday morning due to a downed tree by the neighbor's house (everyone okay there too). The garage flooded and the kids slept with Mommy downstairs because it got scary around the time the power went out. Daddy spent much of the night scooping up water from the front of the garage to try and prevent anymore from coming in.

By the morning, it was time to check out the damage and see the tree with the rest of the 'hood and speculate how long it would take. No one thought this long! Clara and Emma were great at helping to clean up and picked up branches and leaves and raked and shoveled things off the street. The wind stuck around most of the day, but the Gornstein gang made it out to drive around and see what Irene had left and to get some dinner too. Lots of flooding and trees down around town.

Yep, all the food in both fridge/freezers had to be tossed. The pool was closed too because of damage, so that wasn't an option. It mostly was a week spent at Kidville's Princess Camp in the morning, lunch out with friends and outings for fro yo and playgrounds. The gang made the best of it. Local friends were amazing and offered a place to stay, play or eat- it was really appreciated.
At least Mommy and Daddy had their phones...and the kids had a DVD player for a few days.

Back to reality! Yipee!

Princess Camp Fun

The kids loved it! Here are some of the pictures from Monday and Tuesday's camp.

Tuesday the kids got to go to lunch with Jake at Johnny Rockets and in the afternoon, fro yo at Stew's.

IHOP Ballet

Clara and Emma loved going out to breakfast at IHOP before ballet camp. While waiting for their friends, they put on a show.

Tennis in Tutus

The day started early when Mommy and Daddy heard footsteps at 6 am. Clara got up to go pee on her own and went back to bed. Emma followed her and then went back to bed. But not for long- but they are getting the idea.

Clara and Emma came along to Mommy's tennis lesson- before it rained. They sat nicely on the bench and drew pictures of Mommy playing tennis. At the end, they even got a mini lesson. It was off to ballet camp next - and they had a blast!

Zoo!

As part of Mommy Camp, the gang went to the zoo. The kids loved walking around and seeing the lego display of the animals.

Mommy Camp

Yep, Mommy Camp has returned for a few days this week. It could also be called "Operation keep Clara and Emma super busy and happy so they don't whine and drive Mommy crazy and have lots of fun together."

Well, today everyone did a pretty good job at accomplishing the goal. Mommy went to workout and the kids happily went to the babysitting at the gym. After, it was off to the Greenburgh Nature Center to meet friends. The kids had a great time in the small, but sweet butterfly exhibit, meeting animals and even petting a snake and putting a show on for everyone on the stage. They enjoyed lunch at CPK and then spent some time at the pool- even though it was breezy.

Of course, the news of the day is the earthquake that some people felt, like Daddy in NYC or Grandma and Grandpa Frome in Maryland- fairly close to the epicenter- all ok. Mommy was driving and running an errand and heard about it on the radio and didn't feel a thing.  Everyone, everywhere was talking about it. One has to wonder if it is just the last summer boredom factor that made it so fascinating or that it is kind of wild that buildings shook.

Afternoon Pool Fun

The kids went to friend Hayden's house and had lots of fun.

It Is Okay To Be Different

Last week, Mommy had an experiment after Clara complained she didn't want to wear a pull up at night. Mommy knows that usually if Clara is asking to do something, she is ready, just like potty training. So, Mommy told her if she was dry for a week, she could wear underwear at night. And, just to be safe, Mommy took Clara for a "dream pee" sort of like that "dream feed" when they were babies, but now, Clara goes to pee at around 10 pm. Clara stayed dry.

So, finally, last Wednesday night, Mommy let Clara wear underwear. She's been doing great with only once accident in a week- not too bad.

Of course, Emma got upset and thinks she should wear underwear too. Emma isn't able to stay dry and because of her constipation issues, it really is best that she stay in it. At one point, Emma turned to Clara and maturely stated "Clara, it is okay to be different."

Emma argues nightly that she should get to wear underwear too and it isn't fair because they are "twins and do the same things." When she is ready, she'll be ready.

In the same vein, Emma has been doing a great job pooping on the potty. She sits (sometimes is forced to sit) and push (even tries fake ones when she doesn't want to do it) and goes. She does take quite a bit of miralax and fiber, but it seems to be working.Tonight, Daddy promised her .50 cents if she went. When Mommy asked her what she'd save the money for, she had an answer- "the Barbie doll with the doggies." And, Clara aka the future lawyer, somehow managed to get in on the deal and negotiated the money for herself when she poops too- which she does pretty consistently every night. Don't think this is what Daddy had in mind.

Clothes Shopping

Clara and Emma came back to school clothes shopping. Well, not only did they like everything in the store, Mommy actually had them try on clothes in the dressing room for the first time.

It was hysterical. Clara went first and kept modeling the jeans and shaking her tush. Emma followed, and commented "I love this style. I look beautiful."

Facepainting and Balloon Fun

Clara and Emma went with Mommy to the birthday party of one of the kids they met at camp that they'll eventually go to school with in Ardsley. They had a great time!

Swimming In The Rain

This morning, Clara and Emma attended Little Splashers. The kids were dressed in their bathing suits and coverups and it looked overcast with a little sun before leaving the house. By the time everyone got in the car, it was raining. So Mommy took them to the Community Center, where the program was held earlier this week when it rained. However, it was going to be held at the pool, so Mommy loaded them back in and headed over to the pool.

Clara got weepy because she didn't like getting rained on, but Mommy explained that it was a cool thing to do and that she'd have so much fun. They both weren't so sure, but went off with their friends.

Mommy left and drove away as it poured, feeling terrible Mommy guilt. A friend checked on the kids and they did swim in the rain! However, the rain did stop and the kids had huge smiles on their faces and reported that they both had gone swimming in the rain and loved it.

It is great to be a kid!

Little Splashers Camp

Two very tired 4 year olds slept a until 8 today. They started a week at the Hastings on Hudson's Little Splashers. Unfortunately, it was a rainy day, so what was to be outdoors at the pool, was indoors at the community center. Clara and Emma clung to Mommy and didn't want to separate or sit with their friends- which isn't really something they do. However, it was a bit chaotic and there weren't really counselors encouraging them to join the circle, like at Camp Rainbow. However, they did finally join their friends and Mommy was able to leave- and came back to smiles and popsicles!

Today was also the last day for the kids at their summer PT and Speech therapies. They both will have different therapists this fall, so it was time to say goodbye to Michele and Colleen. The kids both had lots of success this summer and it was a good experience for both of them.