"Look, Mama, I have a tail!" *splish splash*
She pretends to look sad, eyes downcast.
"I wish I was a yuman."
A human?
"Yes. I wish I was a yuman so I could marry my guy."
I don't say anything, I just keep scrubbing her down, probably a little too vigorously.
"Alls I have is this tail. I have two arms, a tummy and seashells on my boobies. See?"
"But (again with the downcast eyes) I wish I was a yuman like my guy. Papa told me not to go to the Seawitch but I did'n listen. Papa wants me to stay with him and my sistuhs but I need my man so I need legs."
A dramatic sigh as she splish-splashed some more.
Rather than throw up on us both, I silently curse Disney and offer to wash her hair in the pretend beauty salon, complete with Marge the Hairdresser. When that distraction failed, I dangled the promise of a popsicle if we ended this episode of Mermaid Angst immediately.
Sugar overrules a guy any day when you are three.
Wednesday, October 24, 2007
Friday, October 19, 2007
67 Days, 1597 Hours, 95824 Minutes..now 95823 Minutes..
...'till Christmas.
Last year was a nightmare trying to shop with two babies. I can only imagine the hellish adventure this year with a very verbal 3 year old and fidgety one year old who wants to roam the aisles (Roam. HA. Try run) rather than sit in the cart.
And because I am SOOOO smart n' savvy, I am doing most of my shopping online. It is fantastic. Some stores offer free shipping, some $5 across the board, others have online specials. It is very fun and I can load up the virtual cart, change my mind five times, then order!
However, it appears that I've forgotten who I am.
Yesterday, one of my husband's gifts arrived. I diligently put it in the Christmas gift box hidden somewhere in my house.
On the way home for dinner, we're just chatting about our day and the upcoming week. Out of nowhere, I change the subject and blurt: So do you want your Christmas present now?
Him: Um, what?
Me: Well DO YOU?
Him: Sure, is it shoes?
Me: YES
Him: Dress shoes?
Me: Eh...no. Shoes? Pshaw. What shoes? I haven't gotten you anything yet. Quit pestering me! Christmas is still two months away!
In my opinion, he stared at me a little too long for a person who's driving a small tank.
Last year was a nightmare trying to shop with two babies. I can only imagine the hellish adventure this year with a very verbal 3 year old and fidgety one year old who wants to roam the aisles (Roam. HA. Try run) rather than sit in the cart.
And because I am SOOOO smart n' savvy, I am doing most of my shopping online. It is fantastic. Some stores offer free shipping, some $5 across the board, others have online specials. It is very fun and I can load up the virtual cart, change my mind five times, then order!
However, it appears that I've forgotten who I am.
Yesterday, one of my husband's gifts arrived. I diligently put it in the Christmas gift box hidden somewhere in my house.
On the way home for dinner, we're just chatting about our day and the upcoming week. Out of nowhere, I change the subject and blurt: So do you want your Christmas present now?
Him: Um, what?
Me: Well DO YOU?
Him: Sure, is it shoes?
Me: YES
Him: Dress shoes?
Me: Eh...no. Shoes? Pshaw. What shoes? I haven't gotten you anything yet. Quit pestering me! Christmas is still two months away!
In my opinion, he stared at me a little too long for a person who's driving a small tank.
Wednesday, October 17, 2007
Head On! Apply Directly To The Forehead. Head On!
I'm kidding. This is not a commercial for Head On!
Actually I want to answer Dr. J's question about feverfew. My husband gets seasonal migraines and suffered for years because Excedrin and Tylenol don't work. The migraines would be so bad he could hardly function at work. It was awful and broke my heart to see him go through each attack.
Then a long-time trusted family doctor suggested he try feverfew rather than a prescription that could lead to issues with high blood pressure.
Feverfew, High-Parthenolide, commonly known as Bachelor's Buttons, contains niacin and iron and provides nutrition to the central nervous system. This herb offers nutritional support for migraine headaches. High-Parthenolide Feverfew delivers 500 mcg of parthenolide in a total of 212 mg of feverfew--from a specially grown "high parthenolide" feverfew leaf--per capsule. Parthenolides are sesquiterpene lactones, the major dietary components of feverfew.
These have saved his life and if that seems too dramatic then it definitely saved his sanity! He starts taking feverfew late summer and continues on through spring. It takes about a month for the feverfew to really be effective and that's why he begins taking it before fall starts.
Of course no woman should take this if she's pregnant or nursing. And I highly recommend the pills with the crushed feverfew leaves as opposed to feverfew free leaves for tea. Unless you like the taste of dirt and bark, then more power to you :)
------
Thank you everyone for all the advice and thoughts on organics! I definitely have to continue my research, especially on those items like milk that we use every day. Silly me thinking I could trust companies to just do the right thing :)
Actually I want to answer Dr. J's question about feverfew. My husband gets seasonal migraines and suffered for years because Excedrin and Tylenol don't work. The migraines would be so bad he could hardly function at work. It was awful and broke my heart to see him go through each attack.
Then a long-time trusted family doctor suggested he try feverfew rather than a prescription that could lead to issues with high blood pressure.
Feverfew, High-Parthenolide, commonly known as Bachelor's Buttons, contains niacin and iron and provides nutrition to the central nervous system. This herb offers nutritional support for migraine headaches. High-Parthenolide Feverfew delivers 500 mcg of parthenolide in a total of 212 mg of feverfew--from a specially grown "high parthenolide" feverfew leaf--per capsule. Parthenolides are sesquiterpene lactones, the major dietary components of feverfew.
These have saved his life and if that seems too dramatic then it definitely saved his sanity! He starts taking feverfew late summer and continues on through spring. It takes about a month for the feverfew to really be effective and that's why he begins taking it before fall starts.
Of course no woman should take this if she's pregnant or nursing. And I highly recommend the pills with the crushed feverfew leaves as opposed to feverfew free leaves for tea. Unless you like the taste of dirt and bark, then more power to you :)
------
Thank you everyone for all the advice and thoughts on organics! I definitely have to continue my research, especially on those items like milk that we use every day. Silly me thinking I could trust companies to just do the right thing :)
Sunday, October 14, 2007
It Ain't Easy Being Green
It started with recycling. Hubby began insisting on recycling about three years ago and I think we're pretty darn good at it.
He buys organic feverfew for migraines (works like a champ!) and organic lotions/deoderants. He tried just baby talc but let me just say that we live in Texas so talc and my nostrils are not man enough for his pits in 100 degree heat.
Then after Bella was born, I made the decision to buy only organic milk and then all organic dairy. Easy enough and makes perfect sense for a baby's body, right? Now if I was a even better mama, we'd be doing goat's milk and not cow but I'm not there yet.
Today we spent a eye-popping amount of money on all organic foods at Whole Foods. And it isn't that it all costs so much more than "conventional foods", just that the additional dollar or two more per item for being organically grown adds up quickly!
There's the argument that studies have shown no advantage to buying organic. I disagree. My husband's family elders grow most of their food or buy it locally from other farmers and they are very healthy, active 80 and 90-somethings. Even with his grandfather smoking like a freight train and drinking more than a brewery can churn out in a day, he still works from 4am to 5pm (okay, with a couple of naps sneaking in).
My husband and I have decided to make some lifestyle changes. We are stepping away from processed foods. Slowly. Gotta give ourselves some time to recover from the lack of instant gratification that comes from boxed cookies or potato chips.
We are committed to eating organic, whole foods. We are going to even switch to more "green" housecleaning products. We plan to grow our own herbs, which we attempted a few years ago until the cilantro went nuts and ended up 4 feet tall with flowers all over. Pretty but not tasty.
I used to make fun of those hippies eating organic but it seems so logical now. We aren't going vegetarian because we don't mind a nice juicy steak. However, we do require that lovely cow be fed grass and not grain.
Sure, there's hype and it is deemed trendy to be organic. Yet it is going back to the basics. Simplifying the human diet as it should be. Will we be healthier? I can't see how we wouldn't be.
Will we be broke? Eh, check back with me on that.
He buys organic feverfew for migraines (works like a champ!) and organic lotions/deoderants. He tried just baby talc but let me just say that we live in Texas so talc and my nostrils are not man enough for his pits in 100 degree heat.
Then after Bella was born, I made the decision to buy only organic milk and then all organic dairy. Easy enough and makes perfect sense for a baby's body, right? Now if I was a even better mama, we'd be doing goat's milk and not cow but I'm not there yet.
Today we spent a eye-popping amount of money on all organic foods at Whole Foods. And it isn't that it all costs so much more than "conventional foods", just that the additional dollar or two more per item for being organically grown adds up quickly!
There's the argument that studies have shown no advantage to buying organic. I disagree. My husband's family elders grow most of their food or buy it locally from other farmers and they are very healthy, active 80 and 90-somethings. Even with his grandfather smoking like a freight train and drinking more than a brewery can churn out in a day, he still works from 4am to 5pm (okay, with a couple of naps sneaking in).
My husband and I have decided to make some lifestyle changes. We are stepping away from processed foods. Slowly. Gotta give ourselves some time to recover from the lack of instant gratification that comes from boxed cookies or potato chips.
We are committed to eating organic, whole foods. We are going to even switch to more "green" housecleaning products. We plan to grow our own herbs, which we attempted a few years ago until the cilantro went nuts and ended up 4 feet tall with flowers all over. Pretty but not tasty.
I used to make fun of those hippies eating organic but it seems so logical now. We aren't going vegetarian because we don't mind a nice juicy steak. However, we do require that lovely cow be fed grass and not grain.
Sure, there's hype and it is deemed trendy to be organic. Yet it is going back to the basics. Simplifying the human diet as it should be. Will we be healthier? I can't see how we wouldn't be.
Will we be broke? Eh, check back with me on that.
Tuesday, October 09, 2007
What's Mine Is Mine, What's Hers Is Mine.
Love is patient and love is kind. Unless you are three and one.
Ava had a fun birthday party on Saturday, complete with balloons, birthday cake and sugar rushes. Bella had a great time trying on all of Ava's new clothes and playing with her new toys.
We've officially begun the lifelong journey of learning to share.
Being a firstborn, I try hard to keep in mind what it's like, rather than get completely frustrated, when Bella kicks her little sister out of her room. Or yells at the 21-pounder for wallowing all over her before she's had her wake-up milk.
Explaining repeatedly that Ava gets first dibs on her own toys or that Bella has to share HER toys within reason is exhausting. Bella simply sees no reason for either.
Beyond sharing things, I work daily to share myself with the girls. I have to remind myself of the emotions that come with being the oldest. There are more expectations with the older child which can result in frustration and jealousy of the little one being canoodled while big sis has to fend for herself more. The balance of teaching Isabella independence yet allowing her to be snuggly and needful is very important to me. And her.
So that brings me to my questions:
What rank, if any, are you in the sibling order?
What have you liked most and least about your place in the birth line?
What, if anything, do you wish your parent(s) had done differently with you and/or your siblings?
Did your parent(s) do anything special just for you?
My husband is an only child and the addition of Ava to the family has already been an eye-opening, amazing experience for him. There's no such thing as a perfect parent, but we strive to be good parents. Our goal is to raise healthy, happy, kind and giving children. The dramatic flair both girls possess is just pink icing on the cake!
Tuesday, October 02, 2007
One Year Today
Dear Birthday Girl,
I can't believe we've already had your sweetness for a year!
You are the light of your sister's life. Isabella adores you and loves being your big sister.
You grew from tiny peanut to sittin pretty and before we knew it...
you were climbing into and out of trouble.
However darling you may be, dear Ava,
Willie still doesn't like his ears tugged.
Your smiles, your giggles, the way you cuddle with one arm curled tightly around my neck. How you suck your finger and thumb till they are raw. The way you look at us with a sparkle in your eye just before going off on another adventure, certain to result in shredded paper or half-eaten crayons/playdoh/books.
How your precious nose wrinkles when you are frustrated or simply want to hear yourself breath funny. The way you plink on the piano so proudly while standing on tippy-toe. Or hold a fresh diaper under your naked behind and squat on it as if to help me out. And those sweet, wet baby kisses at bedtime.
Ava Elizabeth, we love and cherish everything about you. Thank you for enriching all our lives.
Love,
Mama, Daddy and Bella
Happy Birthday, Ladybug!!
21 lbs, 30 in
Perfect in every way :)
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