Words, Words, Words

The Parenting Experiment

2012-02-09T12:17:00.000-08:00

A few days ago I was reading the most recent edition of my BYU Alumni magazine and came across an article about a blog called Design Mom. I (of course!) immediately looked this blog up (designmom.com) and quickly became entranced by it.

One of the posts I read linked up to an article about French parenting styles (the woman who writes Design Mom is currently living in France), and it really got me thinking.

The article talked about a visit to a French daycare, where two-year-old children were pealing their own bananas and eating them with knives and forks. It went on to discuss many more examples that showed how French children are typically raised.

While the examples were mainly negative, showing how harsh, strict, detached, and cold French mothers can be, the article also talked about some positive results of this parenting style--the one that caught my eye being respectful, well-behaved children.

This article opened my eyes to the fact that there are many different ideals when it comes to parenting. Not everyone thinks, for example, that a positive parent-child relationship is more important than having children who are independent and well-behaved.

The woman (Pamela Druckerman) who wrote the article (titled "Why French Parents Are Superior"; it appeared in the Wall Street Journal--I have yet to learn how to link anything up to my blog) talked about spoiled American children who see themselves as the center of the universe, and it got me thinking a little about my kids.

As a parent, I find that I constantly have to decide how I will respond to my children's many needs and challenges. After making some of these decisions, I've wondered if I could have helped my children more if I'd done things differently.

When I think of the parent I want to be, I think about positive experiences I've had with my own mom and dad (and grandparents, too), as well as principles I've learned in books like Raise Your Kids Without Raising Your Voice and Hold Onto Your Kids.

However, these ideals are focused on raising children who feel secure, and that doesn't always mean children who are well-behaved, at least in the short-term.

Anyway, the entire issue has led me to the conclusion that in many ways parenting is a kind of experiment. We try our best to sort out what matters most and to help our children be successful in these areas, but different parents--as well as parents in different places--would do it all in different ways.

So . . . on that note, here are a few of our most recent parenting experiments:

1. Alaina: Co-Sleeping Gone Wrong

Alaina has been sleeping in bed with me and Jason for quite some time. I used to start her off in her own bed but for the past couple of months I have just put her down in our bed and let her stay all night. Unfortunately, though, she has taken to sleeping ON MY HEAD . . . and I am not getting any sleep at all. So, we are going to try this.

2. Janae: A Preschool Alternative

As Jason and I evaluated Janae's preschool situation, we were concerned that our little four-year-old was lacking the challenge and stimulation that she needed to learn and grow. Add to this the separation anxiety she had every time I dropped her off and the extra driving I was doing back and forth between Ben's schools, and we decided it would be better for Janae to learn at home for the rest of the school year. So, we are learning letters, baking and crafting--as well as going to her usual dance class, story time, and--in a couple of weeks--Kindermusik. I think she will still be ready for kindergarten in the fall . . . let's hope so!

3. Ben: Catching Up on Academic Skills

I've written before about my concerns for Ben when it comes to academics. This is one of those areas where I wonder if I should have done things differently, since when Ben was young--and he had no interest in the alphabet or numbers, despite my enthusiasm--I didn't push him to learn in this way (we opted for lots of outdoor exploration and imaginative play, as well as lots of listening to stories).

Now, Ben is a sensitive, gentle, kind, and imaginative boy . . . who struggles with reading and writing. But--his teachers rave about his artistic ability, and now his creative writing, too. So . . . we are hoping all our current efforts to strengthen his academic skills are coming at the right time.

As for the results of these and other parenting experiments? All I can say is . . . stay tuned! :)

Two Voices . . .

2012-02-07T18:38:00.000-08:00

Janae and Alaina have always spent a lot of time together, but now that Janae is doing "preschool" at home they are together almost constantly.

Sometimes this means we have lots of snatching, hitting, pinching, yelling, and screaming.

Other times, though, my two little girls get along so well that one seems like a mini version of the other. And now that Alaina is getting a little older, they have enough similar interests that they can usually find something to play.

The other day they both came out dressed as Cinderella;

other times they have both been little tap dancers,

fairies,

or Hawaiian girls (all on their own!).

Sometimes they are just princesses,

or babies.

Neither of them has any qualms about taking Ben to school wearing a nightie and pink leggings under a coat . . . as long as they're doing it together.

There is nothing better than when the two of them get laughing together (except for when their brother is home and joins in, too!).

It's just like Barbie says in one of their favorite movies, "Two voices, one song" :) Or--to include a more literary reference--like Christina Rossetti says in one of my favorite poems: "There is no friend like a sister."

Either way, I'm glad my two little girls have each other.

Cranberry Juice . . . Who Would Have Thought?

2012-02-02T16:56:00.000-08:00

I know nobody wants to hear any more about my attempts to wean the now almost two-and-a-half-year-old Alaina, but our recent development is too astounding not to share.

First of all, just to reiterate, I never set out to have a nursing toddler. I am not a member of any breastfeeding organizations, and if someone had told me that one day I’d be trying to wean a two year old, I would have been horrified. But--as all of us know--things don’t always turn out as planned.

For several months now, Alaina has been down to two servings of "baby milk" a day--usually she is fine with this, and if, during the day, she asks to nurse, she quickly corrects herself and adds, "at bedtime." If Alaina wakes up during the night, she always asks, "Is it morning?" and I tell her the milk is still sleeping.

Feeling that this had been going on long enough, though, I decided it was time to cut out the morning nurse . . . but how? It seemed Alaina’s entire day and night revolved around these two feedings.

Ever since Alaina was just over ONE year old, I’d been trying to substitute everything from a bottle or soother to a stuffie or a cuddle in the rocking chair to wean her. She had never taken to anything.

But considering that Alaina is now TWO, I realized there might be many other options we hadn’t yet considered.

One morning we tried Multigrain Cheerios in bed (without milk, or course!), and that worked well the first time. The next thing I tried was cranberry juice (Janae’s favorite kind of juice) . . . and the results were amazing.

Now, even during the day when Alaina needs comfort, she asks, "Can I have some cranberry juice in the rocking chair?"

I put some juice in a cup, and she sits with me and drinks it.

I know medical and dental health professionals always say that kids don’t need juice--and that plain water is best--but since Alaina has really "latched onto" this new idea . . . and we are always really good about brushing her teeth, I can’t see any harm in keeping the juice flowing (rest assured we are only using 100 percent pure juice blends with no sugar added).

Best of all, we are now just one last step away from burning the nursing bras! :)

No Buses for Ben?

2012-01-31T13:57:00.000-08:00

When Ben started his new routine of two schools a day, we were offered the option of busing between the locations.

I knew that the combination of a new school and riding on a bus with a bunch of new kids and no teacher/parent would be too much change all at once for Ben, but I thought that maybe after he got settled into the new routine he would want to ride the bus with the other kids in his class.

Despite being asked about it almost every day (first by me and then by his teacher), Ben has had no such desire.

But an unexpected development between the bus driver and me might have taken away the bus option entirely.

It all started a few weeks ago, when I was still new at the mid-day pick up/drop off. I was not 100 percent sure where I should park when dropping Ben off at his regular school, since he had to check in at the office and then run out to his classroom, which is in a portable on the other side of the school.

(Left to his own devices, Ben would not make his way into either of these places, at least not directly.)

I thought it would make sense to park in the middle--where there is a "pick up/drop off only" zone.

Technically, drivers are not supposed to leave their cars in this area. However, when Ben was in half-day kindergarten, many of the parents parked in the drop-off zone, then walked their children to the kindergarten door and waited with them for their teacher.

Of course, this would not be possible at busy times, like first thing in the morning or after school, but in the middle of the day, when nobody else is lining up to pick up or drop off children, it seemed harmless.

On the day of kindergarten registration, I took Janae and Alaina into the school with me for a bit longer than usual, since I had to fill out some forms and show proof that Janae was my daughter (not as easy as I had assumed this would be!).

By the time I got back to the van and was buckling Alaina into her car seat, the bus had pulled up behind me. Seeing that I had obviously left my vehicle parked and unattended, the bus driver held up her hands in a perplexed gesture, shook her head with disgust, and mouthed the words, "WHAT ARE YOU DOING?"

I felt a little embarrassed, guilty, ridiculous, and . . . defensive.

After all, I had to park somewhere . . . it was only for a few minutes . . . no-one else (besides the bus) was stuck behind me (and even the bus had room to drive past where I had parked).

I think I also felt a little defensive about driving Ben myself instead of putting him on the bus. It is nice to see Ben halfway through the day, and I have to admit I always feel a little sorry for the nine other kids who don't have their moms picking them up. These kids (from several schools in the district) who need extra help in math and reading also look like they just need a hug--they look so ragged and forsaken as they make their way to the school bus every day.

Anyway, from the day of the "parking incident" on--without any conscious intention on my part--my daily drive has turned into an exercise of ME against the BUS.

If I arrive at Ben's school before the bus (which I usually do), I feel a sense of triumph--I've beaten the bus! (I can't help but think about that famous race between Thomas the Tank Engine and Bertie the Bus . . . and feel like a "really useful" parent.)

If I arrive after the bus, I feel a little negligent--and think the bus driver must be saying, "If only that incompetent woman would let her son ride the bus, he would miss less instructional time!"

Either way, though, I never park in the loading zone--I have found a very nice spot right in front of the school that is always free (I don't exactly have the required mirror tag to park there, but it seems to work okay).

I try to avoid having the bus driver see me parked there, though, as I imagine she would once again be shaking her head and wondering what I was doing.

You might think I am blowing this entire situation completely out of proportion--and you are probably right--but Benjamin did tell me the other day that one of the kids in his class was talking about how the bus driver "always yells at [Ben's] mom" and says things like, "some people just don't think."

So . . . it really is me against the bus.

And after all that's been said and done, I don't think Ben will be taking advantage of the between-school bus system any time soon.

Although, there is the small issue of school swimming lessons coming up in a few weeks, but that will be a different bus, a different driver, a different set of kids, and a different destination.

I think it will be okay :)

Nothing Lost That Can't Be Found

2012-01-25T20:00:00.000-08:00

There are few things more frustrating than looking for something you have lost. This frustration can become much more intense when the lost thing is something of great value or importance, and when the person who gave the lost thing to you is glaring at you as you look for it.

I, of course, speak from experience.

Yesterday, as I was making dough for pizza crusts, I took off my wedding ring and placed it on the very secure kitchen counter.

I do this every time I work with dough, since I strongly dislike picking clumps of flour and other goo from the little spokes that hold the diamonds in place. I think most married women do the same.

Normally I put my ring on top of our microwave, pasta holder, or some other "higher" surface, but yesterday I was cooking with Janae, helping Alaina with the potty at regular intervals, and breaking up fights between Janae and Alaina, Janae and Ben, Ben and Alaina . . . okay--the usual. Somehow, though, I ended up taking off my ring in a quick and disorderly fashion, and placing it on the counter with the rest of the clutter (or . . . essential cooking items that I had neatly lined up beside me).

Anyway, later when I was cleaning up, I realized that I still wasn't wearing my ring. My search became more and more frantic with each passing minute, until I finally announced that the ring was lost.

Jason was annoyed and started helping me look through drawers and cupboards, on the floor, in the garbage--anywhere it could have dropped or been taken.

"Why didn't you put it up high?" he asked.

Hmmm.

Now, I have to admit that this wasn't the first time I'd lost my ring. The other instance occurred in 2005 when I'd let my then one-year-old Benjamin play with it and he'd dropped it down his undershirt--not that we'd discovered this until after Jason (who was not only very mad on that occasion, too, but had also had the flu at the time) had taken apart our bed, dresser, and most of the upstairs of our old house (the story has become a family legend).

Anyway, I know that taking care of my ring is important, and I always try to do it, but . . . everyone makes mistakes sometimes, right?

So, we looked for the ring (on and off) for several hours. I knew it couldn't have disappeared, but telling Jason this didn't do anything to alleviate the glare that had taken over his face.

Finally, after many a silent prayer that my ring would be found (and my marriage saved), I went into the kitchen and once again stood at the counter where I'd made the cursed dough. As I re-envisioned the scene, the thought crossed my mind that I might have closed the ring up in with my cookbook.

I took the book out of the cupboard, let it fall open to my pizza recipe, and . . . found the ring!

Hallelujah!

Jason and I put the kids to bed, read a little bit, then went to sleep.

In the night, Janae woke up from a bad dream and called for Daddy. Jason got up, reached for his glasses, and--not being able to find them--staggered into the kids' room.

A few minutes later he came back to look again for the glasses. They were nowhere to be found. He turned on the light (waking up Alaina!), and did a more thorough search. By this time, I was involved, too (even though it was the middle of the night, you can be sure I somehow managed to maintain a cheerful and helpful disposition!). We looked on and in Jason's nightstand, beside and under the bed, in the blankets--even on the dressers. Like my wedding ring, the glasses seemed to simply be gone.

It was not until this morning, after another complete search of the room, that I spotted the glasses in the middle of the bed under Alaina's blanket.

We were relieved Jason would be able to take Ben to school, go to work, and walk across the room without bumping into anything.

So . . . after all this losing and finding, we have learned a few lessons:

1. Anyone can lose something; losing something is not a sign of not caring for things.
2. We should not treat people who lose things unkindly (they have feelings, too!)
3. It is less likely that someone without glasses can find their glasses than someone without a ring can find their ring.

and, my new favorite,

4. If we are ever looking for the KitchenAid attachments, keep this in mind:

Note: Please be assured that all photos used in this post were re-created for artistic purposes. When I found my ring I did not stop and take a picture before putting it safely back on my finger!

No More Diapers?!

2012-01-24T13:19:00.000-08:00

When new babies come along, it is hard to believe that someday they will be all grown up.

But from the time they are born, it seems all they want to do is get started on it--turning over, sitting and standing, then crawling and walking.

When they are little they just want to be big.

Things don't seem to be much different when it comes to toilet paper, flushing, underwear, and all the other fascinating aspects of potty training.

For my girls, particularly, underwear has been much more interesting than the more bulky, babyish, and--at times--soggy or stinky diapers.

Janae was almost fully potty trained before she was two years old.

Then again when she was two and a half, and a third time after she got used to Alaina.

It wasn’t that she didn’t like wearing underwear, though. She just had a couple of other obstacles to overcome.

Lately it has been Alaina’s turn. Alaina loves “big-girl undies” and has several pairs. She's been wearing them every chance she’s had, even if it’s just over a diaper, and even if she’s had to go through several pair in a half-hour.

The past few days, though, Alaina has not only been wearing big girl undies . . . she has been keeping them dry!

In the car, at the schools, at Grandma’s and Auntie Tina’s houses, at Janae’s dance class . . .

even at night (although if you know where Alaina sleeps, you know we’re not going to let her go diaper-free at night for a few more weeks at least!).

Looking through my pictures for some cute diaper shots got me pretty teary-eyed, thinking about the end of our baby days.

And that lasted just long enough for Alaina to have her first accident since Friday! After cleaning that up I felt a little better :)

We can’t declare her completely potty trained just yet . . .

but before long the only diapers we will see at our house will be these ones!

Benjamin and Janae's Day Off

2012-01-18T10:05:00.000-08:00

In our part of the country, it is not unusual to have a rainy December, a green Christmas, and even an only slightly chilly New Year's.

It's always exciting when we see a little snow, even if it is not until the middle of January.

We will often get just enough to justify pulling out the gloves and hats to make a snowman, even if we can still see the grass poking through.

But once in a while we get a REAL snowfall. One that fills up the yard, makes the roads icy, gets Grandpa reminiscing about Finland, and--best of all--keeps the school buses from running.

This is what happened Monday night . . . which led to a day off of school!

Ben was happy.

Janae was happy.

And a day off of school for Ben and Janae means a day off of riding in the car for Alaina.

She was pretty happy, too :)

After playing for a while in our backyard, we decided to take a walk down the road to Grandma and Grandpa's (Jason has a few days off, too, since not much landscaping can be done under this many inches of snow!)

(watching the big TV seemed to be an essential part of Ben and Janae's day-off festivities!),

then we did what everyone else was doing--we found a hill to slide down and kept sliding until we could no longer feel our faces.

(This was not before Ben had discovered his hidden talent for "belly whopping," though!)

Grandma even sent us home with a packet of left-over Christmas dinner that she had skillfully frozen in such a way that it tasted as good as the original.

I was tempted to put the tree back up--and probably would have, too, if it wasn't so much work.

It really is beginning to look a lot like Christmas . . .

and it is so nice to have a day off :)

(Just ask Ben and Janae!)

Another Sticker Chart Success for Janae

2012-01-13T17:00:00.000-08:00

The last several weeks before Christmas--and the first few days back after--Janae had a lot of separation anxiety every time I took her to preschool.

We knew there could be several explanations for this . . . but since it seemed to be getting worse instead of better (and lasted even when I stayed), I thought I'd better take some action.

Janae had had a similar experience with swimming lessons last spring: she had loved her class, then suddenly refused to go. At the time she'd had her eye on a princess Barbie . . . so I bought the doll, then set up a sticker chart. Every time she went to swimming, she got a sticker until--finally--the Barbie was hers.

I was a little surprised, since I'd never had any luck using sticker charts with the kids for potty training or chores, but--obviously-- I was glad things had worked out so well.

With this parenting success behind me, I thought I'd pull the sticker chart card once again.

And once again it worked like a charm :)

For quite some time, Janae had been commenting on her desire for a "ladybug" umbrella. Not just an umbrella with ladybugs on it, but a particular style that has eyes raised above the top of the umbrella. Janae had seen a similarly styled "frog" umbrella, and had said that even that would do.

Of course, we have a pile of various other types of umbrella in our closet, so I'd resisted Janae's pleas.

But . . . luckily I knew how to speak Janae's language.

I drew a picture of an umbrella, had Janae color it, then day by day the stickers came.

Since the mere mention of the chart, Janae has happily waved goodbye when we've arrived at preschool.

When things started to seem promising, we looked for a ladybug umbrella online (I couldn't find any at our local stores). It was then that Janae spotted a kitty cat one that she liked even better.

The much-anticipated packaged arrived on Wednesday . . . and stayed in a very safe place until this afternoon.

So what happened to the tears, pleas for another hug, mad dashes after me as I walked out the door? Thanks to the sticker chart, they are all just a memory now.

A memory that will hopefully be clouded out by an upcoming rainstorm so Janae will be able to put this little item to good use :)

This Is Why I Read

2012-01-09T10:03:00.000-08:00

Over the weekend I finished A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, and as I closed the book the thought came to me that this novel represented the reason I love to read fiction.

The novel tells the story of a girl named Francie Nolan who grew up—very poor—in Brooklyn, New York, just prior to the first world war. It lets us into not only Francie’s thoughts but also those of her mother, showing us how they ended up where they were, as well as what they hoped, feared, and just generally felt during their many experiences.

The world they lived in seemed so real as I read—I have repeatedly told Ben and Janae parts of the story: of the children collecting and selling “junk” then using the pennies to buy candy, as well as saving for something better for their family; of the children “winning” a Christmas tree that was being thrown away on Christmas Eve.; and of Francie receiving her first and only doll.

There were many other parts that I couldn’t retell to Ben and Janae but that reminded me of thoughts or concerns I have had for myself and for my children. Some passages could have been my very own thoughts written down on paper—it is amazing when someone else puts into words concerns that you have never even verbalized. In books like this I feel such a strong connection to the author and story.

A Tree Grows in Brooklyn is one of those books that really affected the way I think about things—and made me want to go back and re-read the story.

And--in case you haven’t read between the lines--I highly recommend it :)

Frisco Is . . . Married?!

2012-01-07T18:24:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I was working on something in the kitchen when I heard Alaina exclaim in an astonished voice, "FRISCO is MARRIED??!!"

Being busy making dinner and washing dishes, I didn't think much of it.

We all know that Frisco gets lots of love, especially from this girl,

but I don't think any of us really thought he would ever get married.

Then this morning I noticed a Christmas card Jason had opened and that I hadn't seen yet (we'd just got it forwarded from our old address).

It does kind of look like Frisco . . . getting married.

So funny that Alaina was the first to notice :)

New Year, New Schedule

2012-01-06T10:42:00.000-08:00

When we moved across town a few months ago, one of the things we were looking forward to the most was having less stress in the mornings, since Ben's elementary school would only be 5 minutes away (as opposed to 15-20, when we had to drive across town and over the freeway).

I hadn't really thought much about Janae's preschool being practically next door to our old place, since her school is only three times a week, and in the afternoons when there is less traffic.

Just before Christmas, though, we found out that Ben had been accepted into a math and reading program at another school--just around the corner from Janae's preschool.

The program provides a great opportunity for Ben to learn reading and math in a class of only 8 students (with two teachers!). It starts a little earlier, though, and meets Monday through Thursday. At 11:00 I pick Ben up and take him to his regular school.

So . . . our new schedule looks like this:

Wake up extra early.
Take Ben across town to the new school.
Come home for 30-60 minutes.
Take Janae to ballet or both girls to story time (if it's Tuesday or Thursday).
Pick Ben up from the new school and take him back to the old school.
Come home for an hour.
Take Janae to preschool (try to get her to stay).
Come home for an hour.
Pick Ben up at the old school.
Pick up Janae at preschool (if she stayed).
Come home.

And that's without mentioning all of the buckling and unbuckling of the girls, or the grocery shopping, etc. that is just part of life.

I know there are many other moms who keep up much more demanding schedules, but I seem to have reached the limit of what I am capable of . . . or gone just beyond.

After half a week, I have to admit I am getting a bit mixed up. For example, yesterday--as I was driving back to our old neighborhood yet again for story time at the library--I passed an elementary school and thought about Ben being out for recess at about that time.

But when I pictured my son, there was a confused moment when I couldn't remember which school he was at. Was he playing outside at the new school . . . or the old school? It was a bit unsettling.

Today is Friday, which means I just take each child to one school--with no story time, lessons, or other appointments in between. It kind of feels like a day off (or would if I didn't have so much housework to catch up on . . . ).

It is really nice, though, to see Ben halfway through the day--something I will miss today.

I just have a bit of a paranoid fear that I am going to miss a class, or misplace one of my children, in all of this.

Since my good memory used to be one of my most impressive traits, I can't help but feel that this lack of mental functioning is a sign of my quickly approaching entry into much-older age.

I guess I should have done more crossword puzzles over the years . . . or maybe had more sleep.

Since it's too late for any of that, I will just have to--once again--ask that you wish us luck :)

(No) Life without Cheese?

2012-01-03T17:25:00.000-08:00

Background
A week or so before Christmas, I got a call from my Uncle Melvin. He phoned to thank us for our Christmas card, and then somehow got onto the topic of diet and nutrition.

It turns out that over the past year my uncle has become a vegetarian, mostly because of a book he had read called The China Study--a book that he highly recommended to me.

He told me that since he had stopped eating meat and dairy products he had been much healthier--to the degree that he hadn't been sick with a cold or flu all year.

Well, anyone who knows me can guess what I did next. I logged onto our library website and requested the book.

The China Study became available to me just before Christmas Eve, and I picked it up. With every page I turned, I became convinced that I needed to make some dietary changes.

The author--who is a leading cancer researcher and fully credentialed nutrition expert--promotes a plant-based (vegan) diet. He claims, very convincingly, that animal products--including meat, milk, eggs, and cheese--can cause a range of serious health problems.

Meet Veganism
I knew I couldn't start right away--what with two turkey dinners coming up over the next few days--but I decided that after Christmas I would give up meat and dairy products. I thought I'd hold off on serving a vegan diet to my children until I had researched their nutritional requirements a little further, but I made a personal goal to resist these foods.

I checked a vegetarian cookbook out of the library, marked a few recipes that looked promising, and started to prepare plant-based meals: spinach and mushroom lasagna (kind of yucky), all-vegetable spaghetti sauce with multigrain pasta (not quite as yucky but still a little gross), and--tonight's dinner--Greek Bean Soup.

Tonight's Dinner
As I put together a dinner of white kidney beans, carrots, celery, and tomatoes, I couldn't help but think, "There is no way my kids are going to eat this." Even though they had had ham sandwiches for lunch, I felt as though I should give them a little more than the tasteless broth I had boiled all afternoon.

I decided to whip up a couple of cheese pizzas.

As I looked at the plate of homemade pizza in the middle of the table, and tasted my Greek Bean Soup, I had to admit . . . there was a problem.

The Problem
HOW CAN A PERSON WHOSE FAVORITE FOOD IS CHEESE, AND WHOSE FAVORITE HOBBY IS BAKING, BECOME A VEGAN?

I took this question to my husband of 9 years, who asked, "You're still going to make cookies, though, right?"

I followed up with, "You aren't saying that you married me just for my cookie baking skills . . . ?"

Jason had to admit that he had.

This certainly may be a barrier to my success as a vegan.

Conclusion
I must say, I am not sure how this is going to work.

Even my first week as a vegan has been compromised by the overabundance of chocolate and specialty cheeses in the house--the ratio has been something like 50 percent vegetables/whole grains, 40 percent peppermint bark, Toblerone, and Ferrero Rocher (Jason is a little enthusiastic with the chocolate stocking stuffers) and 10 percent Swiss cheese.

I'm sure it's not exactly what the China Study author had in mind (chocolate is not really a "whole food," is it?). And the prospects for future success don't look good.

BUT it is still my goal to become at least somewhat of a vegetarian--if not a full-out vegan--over the coming year.

I guess we're about to find out if I really can live without cheese . . . or chocolate. . . .

We Started 2012 with a Bang . . .

2012-01-02T10:23:00.000-08:00

Well, we started 2012 with a bang . . . followed by a crash, a loud cry, and lots of blood.

First thing in the morning on New Year's Day, little Alaina, who we have lovingly described as a climber on many occasions, was climbing up on a shelf to get one of her babies or stuffies (we can't be 100 percent sure, since she was alone in her room), and fell.

She cut her lip pretty badly, and today it is looking really bruised as well.

Of course it's nice to see that this little incident hasn't done anything to damage her love of adventure

and fun,

but we are hoping it might put at least a small dent in her love of high places.

Wish us luck in the new year. . . .

Lots of Christmas

2011-12-27T10:46:00.000-08:00

Our past few days have been FULL of Christmas fun.

It started Saturday night at Grandma and Grandpa's: lots of music, laughing, cousins, and noise. Of course there was also a wonderful turkey dinner and--the best Christmas dessert ever invented--eggnog trifle.

Even though we act out the nativity story every year, we never manage to plan ahead with costumes, parts, etc. So . . . this year's costumes were a little . . . unconventional.

(Amanda was an angel and Ben was a wise man.)

We also had two Marys, because one little person just wouldn't back down.

Later, Santa arrived, wearing a red disco jacket and a . . . bib?

It's always so much fun to see what the kids come up with :)

Grandma sent us home with presents,

which we opened before bed. Christmas Eve with new PJ's . . . there is nothing like it!

Alaina woke up early the next morning, and we got the others out of bed to see that Santa really had come.

And after that it was toys,

toys,

and--yes--more toys.

We had a great time building, playing, reading, and--my favorite--introducing the new Ariel Barbie to the other princess Barbies :)

After church, we headed out to Grandma and Grandpa J's house for another delicious turkey dinner, another cousin, and more toys.

Ben and his cousin Jack both got very realistic light sabers, and Grandpa was adventurous enough to take them outside in the dark to play with them.

From the living room window, it seemed as though I was actually watching a scene from Star Wars. The boys were pretty happy. (Don't worry, Janae and Alaina had a turn with them later!).

With all that Christmas, you might think we've had enough . . . but you know, we can't wait to do it all again next year :)

And Alaina does keep saying, "Only two more days 'till Christmas!!!!"

A Tradition "More Honored in the Breach"

2011-12-23T21:37:00.000-08:00

Our family has a few traditions. We like to make waffles on Sunday mornings and go to the library on Thursdays for story time. We make a chocolate ghost pie every Halloween and always visit the pumpkin patch at the first sign of fall.

When it gets closer to Christmas, we have even more traditions. We decorate cookies and make other treats,

drive around to look at lights,

and watch favorite shows like The Muppet Christmas Carol, and How the Grinch Stole Christmas.

We have pictures with Santa,

and . . . you’ve heard about the elf.

These are fun family traditions.

Some traditions, though, are "more honored in the breach than the observance," as Hamlet would say--or, simply put, "better broken than kept."

(Ben and Janae trading PJs, for example . . . we just can't have that happen again!)

Anyway, I must confess that I have a little Christmas tradition of my own that does nothing to enhance the holidays.

It always starts early in the season. . . .

My children write their Christmas lists and I can’t help but buy some of the items. I find them on sale or see that there are only a couple left at the store, and I think it would be wise to “pick one up” before the opportunity is lost.

As the weeks pass, my closet becomes packed with gifts, and I feel happy with what I have accomplished. I think about how close I am to being finished my Christmas shopping and about how much time I will be able to spend just enjoying the holidays and focusing on the true meaning of Christmas.

This sounds like a great tradition—and you might be thinking I am a smart, well-organized mom.

But no.

More time passes, and my children start to mention—as children do—other items they would like to receive on Christmas morning. We visit Santa, and I happen to overhear my children whisper quite different lists than the ones I’d seen . . . and made come true.

I start to wonder about those toys hidden away in the closet. Should I take them back? Should I buy more? Am I being too thrifty? Am I being too extravagant? Will they be excited to see these gifts? Will this Christmas have enough magic?

I lie awake at night, thinking about each child and what he or she wants or needs. I get another this or that from the store and then wonder if I’ve bought too many gifts . . . or not enough.

Today is the 23rd, and even though I thought I was pretty much ready for Christmas on December 1, I found myself slipping out to get something I felt we NEEDED to have sticking out from the tops of the stockings (because Janae and Ben were talking about how much fun it was to see last year!).

As I was driving home, I realized that the problem is this: as long as I have time, I will think and re-think about the Christmas presents, and I will not be done until it is impossible to make any changes.

I feel like the student who is adding one last comma to my assignment, even as I am walking up to hand it in to the teacher.

I always found those students slightly annoying, even when I was one of them.

But this seems to be my life’s tradition.

Do you think it can be broken?

My Elves on the Shelf

2011-12-14T18:36:00.000-08:00

As many of you know, an elf arrived at our house this year, early in the Christmas season.

This little guy--my kids named him James--is the topic of A LOT of conversation amongst my children and their friends and cousins, and he is also now pretty much the central figure in our household.

When the kids wake up in the morning, the first thing they do is look for the elf (who moves at nighttime). If people come to visit, they are led to wherever James is sitting.

Ben, Janae, and Alaina show the elf their toys and tell him what they want for Christmas. Benjamin even gave James his Christmas list, trusting the elf--rather than the postal system--to get it to Santa.

This morning Janae asked me to "look for the elf." Since I knew he was on the counter, I made my way into the kitchen--only to find two more elves also sitting very still on the (very messy) shelf.

I think Janae might have a future in this industry.

Anyway, I guess all we can do now is wait and see what kind of report James makes for these three . . .

naughty or nice?

A Few Dollars Later

2011-11-28T12:17:00.000-08:00

I took Janae and Alaina to a hairdresser this morning to see if we could do anything about yesterday's "incident" (see previous post).

Janae's cut turned out pretty cute.

They couldn't do much for Alaina, though.

Some of the pieces were just too short. She does look a bit pixie-ish, though. And you can't really go wrong with those big blue eyes, right?

Still, every time I look at her I can't help thinking of the girl in The Parent Trap who cuts off all of her hair--Alaina's do has a similar shape (maybe it's something about having your hair cut by your sister).

Anyway, a trip to the mall later we at least came up with this. It is nice to know there are some things money can buy.

And, clearly, I only have one son :)

It would take more than a haircut to take the girly out of these girls!

Sunday Fun with Scissors . . . Leads to Monday Morning Hair Appointments

2011-11-27T20:40:00.000-08:00

I have two beautiful daughters, both of whom have hair that I can't help but envy. Janae's is so long and thick,

and Alaina's is so fair, with ringlets at the back.

Of course, their hair is difficult to comb, and Alaina's particularly is difficult to keep smooth--but I would never dream of getting either of their hair cut.

Janae, on the other hand, had big dreams in this department.

This afternoon I was enjoying a rare moment of peace.

Suddenly I heard Alaina crying for me--not an unusual occurrence.

I followed the sound of her voice to the bathroom, where I could hear a scuffle occurring at the door.

Finally Alaina came out. She looked different--almost as though she had a ponytail in her hair, but with shorter bangs.

Then I realized, Janae had CUT HER HAIR. It took a minute to register--she hadn't just cut the front, but ALL OF THE BACK, TOO.

I went into a bit of a hysterical laugh/cry . . . then thought maybe I could salvage some of the ringlets for Alaina's baby book.

So I asked Janae, "Where did you put the hair?"

"In the garbage," she stated.

I went to the garbage, where I saw a pile of white-blond hair . . . and then a bit of straighter, longer, and darker hair underneath.

"Janae," I said, "Did you cut your own hair, too?"

"Yes," Janae said.

Yes, indeed.

These unexpected haircuts are--as you can see--hideous and possibly beyond repair.

Once again, though, Janae has big dreams. After I'd explained that first thing tomorrow morning we were going to have to find a hairdresser who could help, Janae told Jason, "When you see me tomorrow, you are going to think I am SO cute!"

I guess at this point we can only hope.

So Many Mirrors . . . So Much Opportunity for Reflection

2011-11-13T17:51:00.000-08:00

Our new place has a lot of mirrors; in fact, pretty much every room has some type of large reflective surface, whether it is a closet door (all mirrors), a full-length mirror in the hallway, or simply a large window.

Mirrors are great for making a room look bigger, or for checking to make sure your shirt is tucked in properly (or that your princess dress twirls around in just the right way)--and windows are wonderful for letting in sunlight or allowing one to enjoy the scenery.

However, there are a few draw-backs to so much glass in the house.

The obvious one is the amount of Windex we are now using (or--more accurately--should be using) to clean all of these mirrors and windows. It seems impossible for me to keep up the polishing when there are at least three sets of sticky fingers opening and closing the doors at all times.

But this problem is minor compared to the self-image issues that have arisen.

As I stand and polish the glass, or--more commonly--as I open and close the mirrored closet doors to put away laundry or toys, I can't help but notice that I need to eat less, exercise more . . . and acquire a whole new wardrobe.

Of course such changes would be beneficial, but--clearly--they will be difficult to implement.

And whereas in our old place I was able to imagine that I still looked like I did in college, in our new place I am forced to confront the apparent reality that I actually look a little pudgy, wrinkled, and out-dated.

I have no more delusions.

This might sound like a good thing, but delusions can be kind of nice.

Trust me, it's the kind of thing you come to realize when you have so much opportunity for reflection. . . .

Sleepless Nights

2011-11-06T12:35:00.000-08:00

I might have mentioned to some of you that I haven't slept through the night for the past 7.5 years or so.

Usually this makes me really cranky.

But last night when I went to bed I found my most recent night-waker beside my pillow, sleeping with her own pillow and baby.

I thought it was the sweetest thing I'd ever seen.

Maybe all those sleepless nights of teetering on the edge of the bed while Alaina takes up all the room are worth it . . .

at least somebody gets a good rest :)

When Alaina Grows Up, She Wants to Be Just Like . . .

2011-11-02T20:56:00.000-07:00

My two-year-old daughter Alaina has no shortage of older girls to look up to.

She has her sister, Janae,

as well as seven older girl cousins . . . not to mention quite a few aunties and all twelve dancing princesses.

She has been known to ask for Manda by name, compliment Jordan on her "eye-blouse," and follow any one of the older girls around when they are playing.

Recently, though, Alaina has been paying attention to one of her cousins in particular: Rebecca.

Or--more specifically--Rebecca's Halloween costume.

When Becca was here for Ben's annual party, she dressed up as Dorothy from The Wizard of Oz and carried her little dog stuffie, Toto. Whenever she put the dog down, Alaina picked it up and gave it to her.

We thought this was kind of cute--and could see that Alaina was really paying attention!

This morning, though, we saw how much Alaina was really noticing. I walked into Walmart with my girls, and couldn't help but be distracted by the racks of discounted Halloween costumes in the entryway.

As we started to look through them, Janae picked up a Cinderella dress and started begging me to buy it. I had no intention of doing so (maybe some of you have seen Janae's dress-up collection . . .).

I then saw a size 2 Show White dress which was identical to one Janae had at home and thought it would be so cute to get for Alaina. Half price, right?

Alaina, though, had her eye on something else. Even though the racks were PACKED, she had somehow spotted a Dorothy costume, which was also very little.

I tried to convince Alaina that the Snow White one would be fun for dress up, that she could have the same dress as Janae, and that she could have her very own princess costume.

But she came home with the dress like Becca's . . . and immediately found a dog to put into a basket.

She carried it around for as long as I would let her, and then I put the dress into the back of the closet in hopes that it would last until next Halloween (it is certainly not as well made as Becca's!).

Alaina--by the way--thought we were going to be trick-or-treating again tonight!

I thought it was so sweet that she wanted to dress up just like Becca :)

I guess the next thing she will be asking for is a pair of high-heeled ruby slippers. . . .

Three Trick-Or-Treaters

2011-11-01T13:09:00.000-07:00

When we set out for trick-or-treating last night, I had a prediction about how long each of my little ones would last. I thought Alaina would want to go home first, and that Ben would want to keep going the longest.

I only got it half right!

We started at 5:30, and Janae was done by 6.

She spent the rest of the evening watching Mermaidia on the couch (not even a Halloween show!) and helping me to pass out candy.

I tried to take Alaina home with me, too, but she wanted to keep trick-or-treating! Jason finally brought her home at 7; she had two buckets of candy, which was twice the amount Janae had collected.

Ben and Jason didn't come home until 8:00.

By that time, though, Benjamin was finally satisfied that this had been his best Halloween EVER.

It Wouldn't Be Halloween . . .

2011-10-31T13:13:00.000-07:00

With our move at the beginning of the month, we didn't really do October 31 justice this year.

Since Halloween is Ben's favorite time of the year, I have felt a little guilty about this.

I was late getting up our decorations (but did finally find that box of all our best Halloween stuff that I thought we'd accidentally donated) and didn't give as much thought as usual to our costumes. I didn't even get out the cookie cutters to make pumpkin- or mummy-shaped cookies.

Still, it wouldn't be Halloween without carrying on with at least some of our traditions.

It wouldn't be Halloween without a visit to the pumpkin patch

(we went a few times,

although we missed the hayride this year),

carving pumpkins (which we did on Saturday!),

spooky decorations (our lights have a dimmer, which made them look really creepy with the cobwebs),

the library's spooky storytime (Ben and Jason won the mummy-making contest!),

Ben's Halloween party with his grandparents and cousins

(with Amanda and Rebecca helping to put the ghosts on top of the ghost pie),

and costume pictures on the front porch.

(As you can see, we had the Princess and the Frog!)

Of course it wouldn't be Halloween without trick-or-treating, either, which is on the agenda for tonight.

I guess I haven't completely neglected my responsibility to help the kids have a happy Halloween . . . and once their buckets are full of candy, they probably won't remember anything they might have missed :)

High Heels on a Hard Floor: Not Recommended

2011-10-22T21:35:00.000-07:00

When Christmas gifts are carefully selected, they can become long-term favorites and may even pass down through the family from child to child over the years.

For example, a couple of years ago, Janae found a set of high-heeled princess dress-up shoes under the tree.

Alaina at the time, looked like this:

She wasn't interested in shoes, princesses, or even presents. (She was pretty stunned by the tree, though.)

Anyway, Janae played with the shoes all the time, matching them up with her princess dresses and then keeping them together in a special organizing case.

Our house was 95 percent carpet.

Fast forward to present times.

As you know, we moved. You may not realize, though, that our carpet square footage has decreased significantly. You would certainly realize this, however, if the girls were playing dress-up.

Alaina, particularly, has discovered the high-heeled shoes.

She wears them all the time, during all of her various princess errands, including walking the cat,

walking the dog (or . . . donkey?),

and refusing to put on pajamas.

Have you ever noticed how noisy high heels are on hard floors?

Maybe Santa will have to bring us some area rugs. They may also prove to be of lasting value. . . .

Expiration Date?

2011-10-18T13:24:00.000-07:00

When I graduated from BYU with my master’s degree, it was--without a doubt--my proudest accomplishment. I had read lots of thick books and written lots of lengthy papers for courses that spanned the spectrum of British literature.

Some of my favorite courses were on Shakespeare. I had amazing teachers who brought the plays to life and helped me to discover their characters, insights, and poetic language.

Later, when I taught intro to lit classes, I helped convert my own students to Shakespeare—or at least got them to admit that his plays weren’t that bad. I always taught Othello, which was one of my favorites.

I also took any opportunity that came to see Shakespeare’s plays live, attending Shakespearean festivals and lectures, and absorbing as much information as I could.

Or so you would think.

It turns out that this knowledge did not sink in as deeply as I might have imagined—or that it has somehow faded away and become lost over the past 10 years or so.

I came to this realization a few weeks ago, when one of my brothers-in-law thought it might be fun to read some random passages from Shakespeare’s plays and have me identify them.

I thought it sounded like the game I’d been waiting to play all my life and couldn’t wait to dazzle the spectators (luckily just Tina, Mom, and Jason, as you will soon see) with my extensive literary knowledge.

As the first passage was read, however, my excitement started to fade. It didn’t sound at all familiar (although I had to admit, it did sound like Shakespeare).

The second passage—a little longer—drew a similar blank.

The third passage—which contained actual character names—didn’t ring a bell.

The fourth passage was another one I didn’t know.

By the fifth passage things were getting a little awkward.

Finally, my brother-in-law started reading one of the most famous passages from one of Shakespeare’s major plays—where one of the most well-known characters was speaking.

Tentatively I guessed, “Othello?”

Correct.

We all breathed a sigh of relief and quickly abandoned the game.

My brother-in-law then recommended that I go home and burn my master’s degree, which I should probably do.

It is such a lovely piece of paper, though . . . I just don’t think that I could.

Which inspired my idea: maybe master’s degrees, like bread or milk, should come with expiration dates—or, more appropriately “best if used before” dates, stamped somewhere on the back.

I think even teaching first-year English courses would count as use. (Taking children to story time, however, would not.)

This could serve as a warning to the degree’s bearer, as well as an indication to future employers and members of one's extended family, that if the degree hasn’t been used for a while it might very well have expired.

Then again, maybe it is like riding a bicycle . . . and if I just start reading Shakespeare a bit more often, some of my former knowledge will return.

Definitely something to think about as I am folding laundry, changing diapers, and washing dishes, wouldn’t you say?

. . . On With the New

2011-10-04T17:46:00.000-07:00

Well, three days after moving day, I can actually say that we have almost finished unpacking all our boxes (and we did have quite a few!), and that I think we will be happy in our new home.

From the outside it looks like this:

Inside it looks like this:

But it is really all about this:

The deck,

and the backyard.

With plenty of room for this,

and this,

and especially this.

Yes, I am still too tired from moving and unpacking (not to mention comforting displaced children throughout the night) to construct actual sentences :)

I'm sure there will be many more stories to come. . . .

Off With the Old . . .

2011-09-24T13:26:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we went to our "new house" to play with the kids who have been living there--and who would be leaving today (friends from Ben's elementary school).

Their mom took a picture of the six children together on the back deck (a little sneak preview of Jason's favorite part of the house!) and sent it to me this morning in an email titled "Passing the Torch."

So cute.

It got me thinking a bit, though, about what we are leaving behind:

The backyard where Ben started his study of bugs,

and the front garden where we planted our rose bushes (remember the Camry?!).

The place where we brought our last two babies home,

and all three of them learned to walk.

The driveway where they learned to ride their bikes,

the place where Ben has had all of his themed parties,

and the porch where we always posed for pictures.

It's going to be hard to leave so many memories behind . . .

only six more days.

Good thing we get to take all of our stuff with us ;)

Will I EVER Eat a Tomato?

2011-09-21T16:50:00.000-07:00

One of my favorite children's series of books and DVDs is Charlie and Lola. I think Lola is hilarious and I love the way the brother and sister get along so well. Recently, though, we had a Charlie and Lola book from the library called "I Will Not Ever NEVER Eat a Tomato," and I think it might be one of those eerie situations where the book is starting to come true in my life.

Let me explain.

A few months ago (actually back in MARCH, I found, when I went through my pictures), Jason and I decided to plant some tomatoes with our kids. The idea was actually mine, inspired by a crop of tiny plants I'd seen my mom and dad starting at their house.

We gathered seeds, soil, and pots, and planned a Family Home Evening lesson around the New Testament scripture "whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap." I taught my children that if we plant tomatoes, we get tomatoes, just as if we "plant" kindness we get good things or if we "plant" anger, unkindness, etc., we get bad things back. We even had them memorize the verse.

Sounds good, right?

Well, our plants grew nicely during the next little while. We watered them, kept them close to our sunniest window, gave them Miracle Grow, etc. They looked great, and we were pretty proud of the leaves that were popping out and the stems that were starting to thicken.

Pretty soon we had some warmer, sunnier weather, and we decided it was time to put our tomato plants outside.

Then is started to pour with rain. Our plants got pelted with water to the point where not one of them was standing.

Not wanting to give up, we propped them up with sticks and covered them with a tarp. Still, I felt that our chances of actually getting any tomatoes were slim.

I started to worry about that FHE lesson, too. We planted tomatoes, but we were not going to get any. What conclusions would my children form? (Fortunately in this case, though, I don't think my kids retained much of that lesson . . . although they can still quote the scripture.)

Then the sun came out, the plants started to grow, and flower, and show signs of tomatoes. They were tiny and green, but one day I counted 10 tomatoes!

Every day as I watered the plants I was amazed to see more tomatoes had developed. Instead of counting 10, I could see at least 10 on most plants. We were going to have tomatoes after all!

But summer is over now, and still, all we have are green tomatoes. My mom suggested picking any that are even the slightest bit red and letting them ripen in a paper bag, and we are trying that. But it is so sad to know that most of those amazing little tomatoes are never going to have a chance to grow and ripen.

And, like Lola, I might never get to eat a tomato . . . at least not one of our own.

(Well, okay, probably that ONE!)

Littlest Fan Club

2011-09-17T20:23:00.000-07:00

I've mentioned before that my kids love to watch The Muppet Show. We have DVD sets of the first three seasons, and--more often than not--when Benjamin, Janae, or even little Alaina gets to choose a show, they will put on an episode of this 1970s classic.

As a result, my children are more familiar than most with a lot of the "old-time" entertainers, such as Julie Andrews, Harry Belafonte, or--their most recent favorite--Elton John.

If you haven't seen the episode where Elton John appears on The Muppet Show, you have really been missing out. It is even more entertaining than his appearance on Bob the Builder, I have to say (although we got a lot of mileage out of that one, too). Definitely worth a look-up on youtube.

Elton performs several of his early well-known classics, including "Yellow Brick Road," "Benny and the Jets," "Crocodile Rock," and--in a duet with Miss Piggy--his irresistibly catchy "Don't Go Breaking My Heart" (while sporting a pretty dazzling pink sequined jumpsuit, no less).

You can actually say to any one of my three children--and at any given moment--"Don't go breaking my heart . . ." and they will sing back, "I couldn't if I tried" without missing a beat. They are good. And once we start singing it we literally cannot stop. Not even if we try.

Anyway, a few days ago Janae was watching the Elton John episode when she turned to me and asked, "Mommy, is Elton John still alive? Or is he already in heaven?" I assured my four-year-old daughter that yes, he was still alive . . . and added (only under my breath, though) that it might be quite some time before he ends up in heaven (that is--most definitely--not for me to judge, of course).

Janae then said, "I want to tell him that my name is Janae, and I saw him on The Muppet Show." So, we might be writing some fan mail in the next little while.

We have also been listening to the Lion King soundtrack in the car for the past few months . . .

Janae has seriously got to be one of Elton John's biggest--and youngest--fans. Well, she and Alaina.

Not Just the Leaves Are Changing Around Here. . .

2011-09-16T20:25:00.000-07:00

It is hard to believe how much has changed for our family in the past couple of weeks.

The days of sleeping late and swimming lessons in the afternoon are gone.

Janae's time at home with Mommy and Alaina has been supplemented by a few hours a week at preschool and ballet.

(Relations with Alaina seem to be improving, however).

Benjamin is now in Grade 2 . . .

his class meets in a portable, changes for gym, and apparently spends most of the lunch hour playing with something called BeyBlades--we finally broke down and bought a set today, seeing as how Ben was the "only one in his class" who didn't have one yet. (Rest assured, they are not really "blades" but "high-performance spinning tops.")

And soon we will be moving across town . . . into a house.

Janae is sad to be leaving her BFF behind,

but other than that--and all the packing, cleaning, painting, and carrying heavy boxes and furniture--we are looking forward to the change.

Change can be good, right?

Cake, Candles, Cousins, and COWS

2011-09-06T13:13:00.000-07:00

For the past few MONTHS Alaina has been talking about her birthday, or--more specifically--her COW birthday.

It started in the car one day. Ben's birthday had just past, and I was on a bit of a roll--thinking about what we might do for Alaina. I asked my youngest daughter, "What kind of a birthday cake would Alaina like?"

Alaina said, "A two birthday." I acknowledged that yes, she would be turning two, but then thought I'd ask one more time, "What would you like to have on your cake? Maybe Elmo?"

Alaina then said, "A cow birthday." And after that, she started looking forward to her special cow-themed day--which we celebrated yesterday.

Well, the cow turned out more like a dog . . . or maybe pig. But Alaina did recognize it, thanks to all the talk about cows leading up to the party :)

We had a few of Alaina's favorite people over to celebrate with the "farm animal" cake and some perfect gifts (she has been having such a great time playing with all of them!).

Afterwards, Alaina rested up for the afternoon's events (she still looks like a baby in this one, doesn't she?).

We went to see some real cows and horses at a local dairy farm.

The kids played on the playground,

and Alaina drove a tractor.

It was a great day to be two!

Alaina's actual birthday is today (the first day of school, unfortunately), so after lunch I put two candles in a piece of leftover birthday cake and we sang to Alaina again . . . and again . . . and again, letting her blow out the candles a few more times.

So much fun :)

And we are so happy we have our Laina!

New Year’s Resolution Complete . . . Check!

2011-09-01T17:44:00.000-07:00

This year I made a New Year’s resolution to read at least 12 novels during 2011. I am happy to report that as I read the shocking conclusion to The House at Riverton yesterday, I completed my goal.

Now, I know what you are thinking: “What kind of a New Year’s Resolution is
THAT??!!” Doesn’t a New Year’s resolution have to be impossible to achieve . . . and shouldn't it be about weight loss?

Obviously, though, I thought it was a worthy goal.

I love to read fiction (and spent eight years getting my master’s degree in English literature, after all!), but found I wasn’t reading very much because there were always so many other things (not to mention people) that needed my attention.

I didn’t want to miss out on this very enjoyable part of life, though. It sounds selfish, but remember all those arguments about happier mothers leading to happier children, etc., etc.

Anyway, these are the 12 (and a brief assessment of each):

1-5. Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Books 1-5 (good)
6. The Help (excellent; loved the movie, too)

7. The Book Thief (amazing)
8. The Sugar Queen (okay)
9. The Girl Who Chased the Moon (okay)
10. The Distant Hours (amazing)
11. The Forgotten Garden (amazing)
12. The House at Riverton (amazing)

(Kate Morton, author of numbers 10-12 is my new modern favorite, by the way—in case that wasn’t obvious!)

So, now that I’ve completed this goal, you are probably thinking I should devote the last four months of the year to housework. Maybe I should. . . but no.

I have a book on hold at the library, and I will pick it up before the doors close today. Then after that, a long list of holds yet to come in.

Have I mentioned that I love the library? And reading? And checking off New Year’s resolutions? (And bragging about my accomplishments?) :)

The 24-Hour All-You-Can-Drink Milk Cafe is Now CLOSED (Could Somebody Please Tell Alaina?)

2011-08-28T13:40:00.000-07:00

Alaina and I are both in denial when it comes to some aspects of her growing up.

We are all for her advanced verbal skills, her willingness to try new adventures,

her desire to use the potty, even the little bits of big-kid culture she learns from Janae, like how to be a proper princess

or how to color in the lines with markers.

But Alaina being my last child, I have to admit I am not in a hurry for her to lose all of her baby traits--and she is holding onto a few of them, herself. For example, she still loves the snuggly (which I pulled out of the closet the other day),

and I don't mind carrying her in it once in a while (long legs dangling and all).

Alaina also sleeps best in our bed (following after her brother, who slept between Jason and me until he was in kindergarten), and I am happy to have her there (I think I even sleep a little better, myself).

Then there is the issue that divides us: the not-so-small matter of trying to wean Alaina. This is a part of her babyhood that I am ready to leave behind us. Alaina, however, is not.

Over the past few months, I have managed to teach Alaina that she is only allowed to nurse at home, and--more recently--only at bedtime and naptime.

While Alaina hasn't liked these changes, she has adapted.

My newest goal--and the most urgent--has been to close down the all-night milk cafe. I have followed the advice of countless parenting books by explaining to Alaina that just as all of us need to sleep at night, the milk also needs its rest (weaning a toddler allows the advantage of reasoning with the child, right?).

Before I started on this new phase of our mother/daughter relationship, Alaina was waking up 3-5 times a night for a drink. Now, after two weeks on our new program, she wakes up 3-5 times a night to be told the milk is sleeping and to be handed a sippy cup of water . . . and then hear a song, have her back rubbed, or just simply cry her eyes out.

At the first sign of daylight (approximately 5 a.m., in case you were wondering), she says, "It's morning?" and then asks for her milk.

And after this, we can tackle the afternoon nap nurse, and then the nurse at bedtime.

I think there is a lot to be said for weaning at 12 months, even though the B.C. nurses' federation recommends breast feeding "until age two and beyond."

I guess none of us would be too happy to hear that our favorite restaurant closed down, or that the bottomless drink we'd ordered had suddenly become non-refillable.

Still, this can't go on much longer.

Could somebody please tell Alaina?

Our Summer Reading Club Medalists

2011-08-21T13:44:00.000-07:00

The summer reading club is something I look forward to every year. The library brings in some great science, music, and magic shows

. . . they have stuffed animal parades, puppet shows, and special story times.

My kids even have a good time, once in a while.

This year Ben and Janae got a bit of a later start than usual on the reading part of the club. This was evident a week or so ago when they were waiting in line to get sticker #6 (out of 7) on their cards and the librarian rang the sleighbells (normally reserved just for storytime) and proclaimed, "Attention everyone: these kids just got their summer reading club medals. Let's give them a big hand!!!" She shook a pair of plastic clapping hands together to create the sound of applause, and the two children beamed with pride.

My two fumed with jealousy.

"I wish we were getting our medals," Ben complained the rest of the afternoon.

Over the next week Ben and Janae were ON TASK. They did their reading, recorded their books, and--day by day--got more excited about Thursday when they, too, would have their reading cards completed.

We went to the library that morning and received the awards.

Forty-nine days of reading 20 minutes or more!

This year--in addition to the medals--the kids each got a coupon for a free spaghetti dinner at the Spaghetti Factory.

Ben and Janae wore their prized medallions and enjoyed their victory dinners.

Just another reason to love the library :)

These Kids Go WAY Back

2011-08-14T18:13:00.000-07:00

While Anita and her family were here, I thought it was kind of cute that Janae spent so much time playing with her cousin Tyson.

Janae is used to boys (spending a lot of time playing pirates, Star Wars, etc. with her brother), and always seems to do well in situations where she ends up playing with boys, as opposed to girls.

Occasionally I've even thought that her fiesty personality might go over better with boys than girls (since boys tend to be a bit more easy going and less emotional).

But yesterday as I was looking at some old pictures with Ben, I realized it actually goes even deeper than that.

Janae and Tyson actually go way back.

(This picture was taken after they'd both fallen asleep during a walk with Grandpa.)

It was fun to look at some of the other life-long bonds my kids and their cousins have formed.

Ben and Tyson

Ben and Jill

Ben and Trevor (or is it Tyler? It's hard to ever be sure . . . )

And we've all seen these three grow up together.

Alaina is off to a good start, too.

I wish I had more pictures of all of the different combinations!

It kind of makes you wonder what this group will look like in a few years, doesn't it?

Grand Finale

2011-08-11T09:15:00.000-07:00

For the past few weeks, we have had my sister Anita and her family visiting from Los Angeles. One of the first days Anita was here, we made a list of fun things to do in our area. Day by day, we checked off the items.

With up to 11 children at any given moment, we played at parks, ate ice cream, visited farms, saw movies, built in the sand at beaches and lakes,

shopped at the mall, had picnics and barbecues, swam at the swimming pool, went for bike rides and walks, made up songs and games, told stories, started a Harry Potter movie marathon, splashed at the water park, climbed mountains,

found waterfalls, and even walked through tunnels.

It might be exaggerating to say that we left no stone unturned and no cave unexplored, but not by much!

By the time we got to Anita's last day, we were having trouble thinking of something to do.

We finally decided on a visit to Stanley Park . . . something we hadn't done yet!

We saw the ocean and the flower gardens,

rode the train,

and had our picnic.

Afterwards, though, something still seemed to be lacking.

Then we went to my mom and dad's house for dinner, and I realized what it was. We still hadn't ALL been together yet!

When my sister Sheri and her family joined us, we were all there with our mom and dad. We got my dad to take a picture with all the families.

It is not every day we can get a picture like this

or this,

or even this!

(I think we got a little carried away . . .)

And after the big group shots, the older girls and I couldn't resist going out into the back yard for . . . more modeling pictures :)

At the end of the evening there were lots of hugs and tears. We will miss all the togetherness! It is wonderful to have so many fun summer memories, though, and--of course--all the pictures :)

School is FINALLY Out for the (Rest of the) Summer!

2011-07-29T09:47:00.000-07:00

It was a rocky four weeks, but I am happy to announce that Benjamin not only now has summer school behind him but he has also made a lot of progress with his reading.

I thought it might be fun to have Ben's cousins all come and meet him after school on the last day, and they were more than willing to help out.

Ben was pretty happy to see so many of his favorite people standing outside the classroom.

We played on the playground in the warm sunshine for a while (yes . . . we also finally had a sunny day!) then went to a very kid-friendly location for lunch.

Later we had everyone over to celebrate . . . we even baked a cake, and the girls helped me make ice cream.

That evening, Ben sat down with a pile of books to complete his summer reading club daily requirement (and then some).

And this morning we all slept in :)

Let the summer holidays begin!

Modeling Shots Finally Make the Blog!

2011-07-26T11:22:00.000-07:00

Summer is the time when my children get together with all their cousins.

With so many kids together, it seems inevitable that we occasionally end up at a park.

And somehow the older girls always end up posing for modeling shots . . . modeling shots which I always suggest will appear on my blog.

Somehow, though, I have never followed through on this highly anticipated modeling post. I guess it is just that I haven't known what to say about the pictures, besides the obvious: "Look at my nieces; aren't they photogenic?!"

But now that a few years have passed, and several dozen modeling shots have accumulated on my computer, I have a little more to say:

Look at my nieces--haven't they grown?? And aren't they photogenic??!!

2008

2009

2010

2011

And aren't my girls lucky to have such talented, smart, fun, kind, and beautiful cousins as role models???!!!

I think they are :)

Almost Ready for a Real Vacation

2011-07-10T14:41:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was one of those rare Saturdays when Jason wasn't working and we didn't have anything on the calendar that we had to do.

Being the fun-loving dad that he is, Jason suggested we take the kids out for ice cream.

I, however, had bigger things in mind :)

So, we ended up going to Manning Park. Janae cried during most of the almost two-hour drive, saying she wanted to go home. Once we got there, though, she loved the park so much she said she wanted to live there! She is definitely one for extremes.

It was easy to see why she loved being there, though. We spent the day hiking

(we didn't know the path would be SNOWY),

feeding the chipmunks,

picking wildflowers,

enjoying the scenery,

and just generally having fun.

As you can see, I took a few pictures, too!

After that it was more squirrels: we found out they really like crackers and nuts

and that they are REALLY comfortable with people.

We ended the day at Lightning Lake . . . and when I say "ended the day" I really mean it. Some of us were DONE.

But it was fun to get away, especially to somewhere so peaceful and beautiful. It made us think we are almost ready to go on a real family vacation. Almost.

Nothing Wrong with a Little Tradition

2011-07-08T16:21:00.000-07:00

Benjamin started summer school this week, and my first impressions were pretty positive. We got to sleep in an extra half hour (the school starts a bit later and is much closer to our home),

Ben could wear shorts and a T-shirt every day (as opposed to a uniform),

and school was over by noon . . . allowing Ben to come home and spend the rest of the day doing whatever he liked--such as blowing bubbles in his pink milk

or playing at the water park.

The atmosphere at the school, and even the kids themselves, seemed a lot more laid back than what we were used to at the traditional school Ben normally attends.

I started to think maybe we should transfer Ben to a regular school.

That thought lasted about two days. On the third day I overheard a couple of conversations that changed my mind.

The first was between two boys, both Ben's age, but fortunately not in his particular class.

Boy #1: "I am going to come to school next time with dynamite in my pockets. When I get inside I'll light it and say, 'I never liked any of you anyway.'"

Boy #2: "I am going to put dynamite in my mouth, walk in and say, 'Hasta la vista baby.'"

Yikes!

The second conversation was between Ben's teacher and one of the parents, who had apparently sent his two sons to school on the city bus. The teacher was advising him to take the kids on the bus at least one time before sending them alone, just so they would know where to get off when they were making their way to school.

Wow.

The kids at Ben's traditional school are so different. Their moms and dads hold their hands on the way to and from their cars. They are so respectful and positive toward their school and teachers. Even when there is an after school activity, such as a book fair at the library, they won't so much as walk into the building without taking their outdoor shoes off.

Maybe some traditions are okay.

And speaking of traditions, I was happy to see what happened with my kids this morning. There is no summer school on Fridays, but as soon as Ben and Janae got up they got out the library bag and starting looking at books about owls (their current topic of interest).

It's reassuring to know that even though Ben struggles with reading on his own, he loves books, learning, and stories--and these things are a big part of his life, even when he gets to choose what to do.

Hopefully his reading will come along, too, with all the extra work he is doing.

Back to School???

2011-07-03T16:53:00.000-07:00

There are few days kids look forward to as much as the last day of school.

For Benjamin, who has not yet gained a passion for academic learning, the last day of school is definitely right up there with Halloween and Christmas.

So, you can imagine how he is feeling today. Wednesday was the last day of school . . . and tomorrow is the first day of Summer School.

It just feels wrong.

Ben still needs time to sleep in, play with his sisters,

swim, go to the beach, practice on his new bike,

collect bugs, play outside, eat ice cream--all the things little boys do when they don't have school.

I know all the arguments about summer school being only half a day, only four days a week, only four weeks . . . but it is still school!

On the bright side, though, our countdown will start again tomorrow--leading up to the FINAL last day of school before we start again in September.

Only 16 more classes left!

Here Comes Alaina Snowflake . . .

2011-06-29T13:20:00.000-07:00

Well, almost a week after Janae's performance of Suzy Snowflake on the big stage, she has finally let Alaina try on her costume.

This is how it looked:

She seriously would not stop moving for even a split second!

She was dancing/running around the table singing "Here comes Suzy Snowflake," although it seemed more like a snow STORM when Alaina did it.

Janae eventually wrestled her down in an attempt to help me get a picure.

When I sat down in front of the computer, Alaina came over to climb on me (her usual routine), so in the end we did get a semi-still shot :)

I don't think I've ever seen the girls have this much fun together, though!

Our Own Chapter of L'il Gardeners

2011-06-27T20:22:00.000-07:00

In the spring Janae was registered for a class called L'il Gardeners through our local parks and rec center. The day before it was supposed to start, though, we got a call saying the class was cancelled.

We were disappointed.

However, today our own chapter of L'il Gardeners sprang up spontaneously with the neighborhood children.

It started with a little bit of digging.

I found a few more plastic shovels, rakes and buckets in the backyard . . . and soon everyone had a tool to use.

We ended up with more dirt on the sidewalk than the garden,

but luckily had it all cleaned up before the Big Gardener was any wiser ;)

Do you think I should get in touch with parks and rec and make it official?

One of Us Is Ready for the Big Stage

2011-06-22T21:53:00.000-07:00

Last night Janae had a dressed rehearsal for her dance recital. All day I was as nervous as I would be if I was the one performing . . . but I tried not to let it show because I was worried about passing my jitters on to Janae.

An hour before we needed to get there, I did Janae's hair and make-up, got her dressed, then made her sit on a chair until it was time to go.

When we got there, Janae was SO excited to see the big stage and auditorium.

She danced in the aisles with her friends while she waited for her turn to go on stage.

When the music started, she step-hopped, twirled and sang out, just like she'd practiced in class.

Afterwards she was as happy as a little girl could be.

She is so unlike her mother!

The Series of Events (All Unfortunate) That Led to My Mid-Life Crisis

2011-06-18T20:08:00.000-07:00

It used to be that when I thought of a “mid-life crisis” I pictured unattractive balding men who bought Ferraris and left their wives for women half their age.

It never occurred to me that I would ever BE middle aged or have any type of crisis about getting old.

Not until recently, that is.

Over the past few weeks a series of unfortunate events has occurred that has made me feel a bit differently.

The first was at church. I was thinking about that old question of whether or not I should have one more baby, when I happened to glance to my left and see three mothers of new babies sitting together. I started thinking about how youthful they looked—unlike me, they still had smooth skin, rosy cheeks and cheerful dispositions.

Then I started thinking about how young they actually were. This led me to the realization that I was approximately twenty years older than these young mothers. TWENTY YEARS. I was very likely the same age as some of their mothers. I immediately reprimanded myself for even thinking about having another baby and began to worry about how old I would already be when my grandchildren were born.

The second incident occurred one day as I was standing in my kitchen washing dishes. I was thinking about my new responsibility at church, which—as I mentioned in a previous post—is teaching the adult Sunday School class, the Gospel Doctrine class.

I started to think about what a “grown-up” calling this was, then realized that my previous responsibility—that of being in the presidency of our women’s organization, the Relief Society—was also one that is often filled by “older people.” It was then that it hit me: I AM one of the older people. It was a bit of an uncomfortable thought, I have to say.

The third incident—and final one that I will discuss—happened when I was looking at some pictures my aunt had posted on facebook. They showed her granddaughter, who was graduating from high school, wearing her prom dress and posing with her friends, boyfriend, parents, etc.

As I looked at the pictures I could not get over how young and beautiful--and different from me--my 17- or 18-year-old cousin-once-removed looked. I started to realize that I could never look that young again, or be that young—or anywhere near it. And this led to thoughts of how I’d spent my youth wanting to be older, and wondering why youth is wasted on the young, and other old-person thoughts like that.

Now that I know I am middle-aged, everything is different. I walk a little slower, get more headaches, and find that life has lost a bit of its luster (although some of that is just because I’m not wearing my glasses, I’m sure).

Part of me wonders if I should just head to the Ferrari dealership and be done with it. (No need to worry about younger men, though. . . . )

On the other hand, I’m just getting comfortable with the Caravan. Maybe—with time—I will get comfortable with “middle age.”

Am I really middle-aged?

So, You Think You Can't Do Hair?

2011-06-16T14:10:00.000-07:00

I mentioned the other day that I am not very good at doing little girls' hair. Well, the hair fairies must have been listening, because a few hours later Janae came to me with a request:

"Mom, can you do my hair in two princess twists?"

Princess twists? I highly doubted it.

Then a distant memory popped into my mind. I'd seen a blog called "Princess Hairstyles" ages ago that had pictures of fancy hairstyles AND little videos with step-by-step instructions on how to make them happen.

So, I looked it up and browsed the photo gallery with Janae. I found a hairstyle that was labeled "quick and easy" and tried it out on my daughter.

It looked pretty princessy, I had to say.

Today we tried another one, and it also turned out quite beautifully.

Now the only thing holding me back is the little princess . . . who has other things to do than sit and have her hair styled :)

Maybe one of these days I'll have to get to work on Alaina.

Don't Take This the Wrong Way . . .

2011-06-14T21:34:00.000-07:00

Before I had children of my own, I thought I had a pretty good idea of what it would take to be a good mother, but--as I have admitted on several occasions--some aspects of parenthood are a lot more difficult than I imagined they would be. And in many cases, I just don't cut it.

For example, I am not really good at doing little girls' hair or putting false eyelashes on them.

I also lack fashion sense and can't quite coordinate my kids' outfits the way some more skillful mothers do.

(And, yes, I think I've mentioned before that all three of my kids want to be pirates when they grow up.)

Sometimes I bend the safety rules to let my kids have a little fun.

I'm not even much of a vegetable gardener, and I couldn't keep a potted plant alive to save my own life (although my roses are looking quite nice this year).

Anyway, the one redeeming quality I always fall back on is that I did get that master's degree in English a few years ago.

Sometimes--when I see someone from my old high school when I'm shopping with my not-so-well-behaved kids, or run into someone from church when my little ones are not looking quite as well dressed or groomed as one might expect, or when I look at the ratty mess at the back of Alaina's hair and wonder myself if she actually does have a mother, or even when I write/say/think something that turns out not to be 100 percent gramatically correct--I wish I could hold up a sign that says "I have a master's degree in English," just so people would realize I am not completely lacking in all competence (or at least that I haven't always been).

So, to get to my point.

The other day after school I was talking to Ben's teacher about my son's lack of desire to attend summer school. (Benjamin has been recommended to a program to strengthen his reading skills . . . classes start a few days after regular school ends and go until the END of July. I wonder why he is not excited--I wish I could go!)

Ben's teacher was explaining that the program will help him keep the benefits of all the hard work he has put into learning to read this year.

From the start, I have thought the program would benefit Ben, because it is very difficult to get him to read at home. He does, however, LOVE to be read to, and would listen to books for hours if he could--especially at bed time. But I will get to that in a minute.

As I was talking to Mrs. P, though, she mentioned that for some kids reading through the summer would happen naturally because reading is just a big part of the family's life and routine.

As opposed to our family????

Let me introduce you to my family, and our apparently little-known familiarity with literacy.

I have read pretty much every day to all three of my children since they were born. With Ben, I even tried to read to him BEFORE he was born (a little enthusiastic, I was).

My children feel more at home at our local library than they do anywhere else (with the possible exception of Grandma's house).

I don't think we have EVER missed a story time (okay, maybe one or two--but those were in cases of extreme illness). We know all the children's librarians by name, all the songs and rhymes by heart, all the best spots to find books.

We join the summer reading club every year, and attend all the activities--we even wore out the handle on our library tote bag.

I think few could match our enthusiasm for the library!

We have books in every available space in our small home. I can't pass a bookstore, book fair, or even book shelf at the library without picking up a book.

And then there's that master's degree in English that I mentioned earlier.

As you can imagine, Ben's teacher's comment cut to the core of my entire self-concept.

I have always hoped, and even believed, that in at least this one area I AM NOT A NEGLIGENT MOTHER!

We read with our kids!

I'm glad I got that off my chest.

Still, I am thinking of having some T-shirts printed. I am just not sure which slogan would put it best:

I Have a Master's Degree in English

Literary Lisa, M.A.

My Other Degree is in Linguistics

Kiss the English Teacher

It might make me feel better.

What do you think?

My Once-a-Week Flu

2011-06-12T21:56:00.000-07:00

Everyone has heard of the 24-hour flu, the stomach flu, and various "famous flus" like the swine flu or the avian flu. These nasty bugs can make our stomachs queezy, give us fevers and/or chills and send us running to the washroom.

I know that when I have the flu I always think I am going to die, or that the flu will never end. When the flu is finally over, I am always relieved, but also very weak, dehydrated, and hungry.

I mention this because I seem to have become infected with a flu that affects only me and that occurs--as if on schedule--once a week.

Each Sunday I feel sick to my stomach all morning. I hyperventilate, find it difficult to hold conversations with my kids, and then end up having to leave our church's sacrament meeting at least 2-3 times.

After Sunday School, though, I find I am in post-flu mode: the nausea is gone, the fever and chills have left, but I am run down and really hungry.

Interestingly enough, I caught this flu the week I started on my new calling of teaching our adult Sunday School class.

Today was week four, and I am starting to wonder how long this bug will last. . .

"7" Is a Magic Number

2011-06-05T13:26:00.000-07:00

Benjamin started celebrating his seventh birthday in the usual way, opening Star Wars Lego . . .

After that, though, he entered a magical world :)

We had witches, wizards, toads, cats, rats, and owls. The kids drank pumpkin juice and polyjuice potion . . . and lots of Butter Beer.

They were sorted into houses, and a couple of them even became prefects (just as Professor Trelawney predicted, I might add!).

Then it was time for classes. The young students started with Herbology, taught by Professor Sprout (Auntie Tina!). They planted M&M seeds in a "dirt" mixture, added a few worms, and--magically--lollypop plants grew :)

Next it was Care of Magical Creatures with Hagrid (assisted by Rebecca the Prefect). The kids searched for dangerously toxic flubberworms in a bowl of rice, then learned how to take care of them. Plastic gloves were mandatory for this one!

After Hagrid's lesson the group met Professor Snape (Don't worry--it was just Uncle Ted in a Snow White wig!). They mixed and tested potions that made them stinky or hyper, losing house points for pouring improperly, etc.

Finally, Professor Trelawney taught them how to read tea leaves, making predictions about their futures.

The kids went outside and played a highly simplified version of Quiddich, then came back in for birthday cupcakes.

(I have to add, I loved how these little owls turned out--I made a practice batch a few weeks ago that did not work AT ALL, but Ben still wanted me to make them for the party, so I gave them another try!)

We had a few minutes left to open the presents.

Benjamin got so many fun toys and games that he is really excited about (most of which he has already opened and tried out--he keeps disappearing to his room . . .).

Thanks to my dad we somehow managed to get a group picture,

then we sent everyone home with chocolate frogs (probably melted globs of chocolatey mess by the time they got home since it was a very warm day!) and little red bags of every flavor beans (thanks to my mom who made all the draw-string bags).

It all sounds pretty magical, doesn't it? ;) I think seven is going to be a good year!

THE DRESS Has Arrived

2011-05-31T16:21:00.000-07:00

I think the only dress fitting I ever attended was for my wedding dress (although I was measured many times by my mom, who made most of my dresses growing up).

Janae, though--at age four--has already been fitted for a very special dress . . . and it was entrusted to me yesterday (with strict instructions that Janae is not to wear it until her dance pictures this weekend, and then her dressed rehersal and performance at the end of this month).

Anyway, Janae and the other girls in her Little Steps class were measured back in November, and they have been talking about their costumes ever since. In fact, some of the other girls' moms have admitted that visions of THE DRESS are what's kept their girls coming out to ballet every week.

They are all dying to wear these glittery blue tutus on stage :)

Of course, with sparkly blue dresses come high ponytails with ringlets, false eyelashes, and red lipstick . . . so we've got a bit of practicing to do over the next little while.

We tried out the sponge curlers last night (apparently the only way to get ringlets on little girls). Janae was up at 2 a.m., and by 4:00 I agreed to take out the curlers, just so we could all get a couple of hours of sleep.

The effect was still pretty good, even after playing outside for an hour (which is when these pictures were taken).

Anyway, now that THE DRESS is actually in our home (with Janae walking by my closet to look at it several times a day), we are getting pretty excited to see Janae's Snowflake dance . . . or whatever the three- and four-year-old girls actually do once they get onto the stage.

It will be a dream come true for Janae :)

Preparations Are Under Way (To Say the Least)

2011-05-29T15:37:00.000-07:00

A few months ago, Benjamin asked if we could have a Harry Potter party for his birthday this year. I immediately said YES and started to plan.

Now I can tell you without a doubt what Jason's four least favorite words in the English language are: "I have an idea . . ." (only when they come from me, though!).

Seriously, the possibilities are endless when it comes to a Harry Potter party, and little by little our house is turning into what could only be called a Hogwarts factory.

Here is a sneak peak of a few of my ideas:

Floating candles (we had to try three different kinds of tape, but I'm pretty sure we can now guarantee nobody will be knocked unconscious by candles falling from the ceiling!)

Sparkly stars for the enchanted ceiling (I sparkled one side then realized I needed to sparkle BOTH sides to create a truly magical effect. I will not admit to the number of hours this has taken. . . .)

I don't think there is anything in our house not covered with glitter at this point (don't tell Jason!).

Chocolate frogs (I tried and tried to find a way to make the "real" boxes but finally had to settle for these wedding favor boxes from Michaels . . . but the Belgian chocolate frogs are really good--we've done a practice round to be sure)

Wizard trading cards (I'm hoping to find a way to laminate these!)

My party--I mean Ben's party--is on Saturday, so I'm sure I'll be busy this week trying to bring more of my "magical" ideas to life. . . .

Stay tuned :)

Little Sunbeams . . . and Beyond

2011-05-16T16:48:00.000-07:00

I've mentioned before that Alaina has really taken to her nursery class at church, staying there on her own most weeks. She especially loves music time.

The little ones sing a song called "Jesus Wants Me for a Sunbeam" while the nursery teacher walks around with a cardboard cutout of a sun, complete with a little circle where each child's face can peek through.

One day I went into Alaina's room and saw her imitating this with the end of a coathanger and some stuffies. She was singing, "Sunbeam, Sunbeam" and putting the hanger on the faces of teddy bears and kitty cats--it was so cute!

So, I thought I'd make Alaina a "sun" of her own to play with at home :)

This weekend I took my three "sunbeams" to a Primary activity at our local temple. It was mad chaos with about 400 children and their parents, but it was fun to be there . . . at least for a little while.

The kids got to tour the grounds, build a smaller version of a temple, and help dig holes for some new trees that were going to be planted.

Alaina quickly decided she'd had enough, but I kept her there as long as I could.

I tried to get a picture of Ben, Janae, and Alaina before we left, but it turned out kind of like this:

and then this:

I guess you can't expect too much from a little Sunbeam :)

Time to Move?

2011-05-15T19:18:00.000-07:00

As I read over my last post, I realized it was a little cheesy . . . and not quite true. While it is true that before I had children the only thing I ever wanted was to be a mom, I have to admit that now that I am a mother . . . well, there are still a few things on my wish list.

For example, I wouldn’t mind having a big house in the country, a total makeover, a housekeeping service at my disposal, or even one of those flowering hanging baskets that everyone puts out in the spring.

But getting back to that big house in the country. . . .

We live in a town house located in what few would call a “nicer” neighborhood (how’s that for a euphemism?). While we have several wonderful neighbors in our complex itself, when we take a walk on our street--or even venture down to our lower parking lot--we find a bit of a rougher mix.

Normally we are pretty oblivious to this as we go on with our lives. Once in a while, though, it’s kind of hard to ignore.

For example, a few days ago, we received a notice in our mailbox. It read:

IMPORTANT NOTICE

USED NEEDLES HAVE BEEN FOUND ON THE COMMON AREA GROUNDS.

Please remind your children that if they do see a needle not to touch it and to get an adult.

Used needles can be placed in a tin can.

WEAR GLOVES AND AVOID TOUCHING THE POINTY END. . . .

If you are not comfortable touching the needle, someone from the Maintenance Committee can do it for you.

The Maintenance Committee will also collect the needles for correct disposal.

________________________________________________

I know what you’re probably thinking: what a progressive community Lisa lives in—they even have their own needle exchange program, right in their backyard! The neighborhood children are involved, too—how modern!

You probably know what I’m thinking, though: Time to move?

Three Babies Later

2011-05-08T15:19:00.000-07:00

For as long as I can remember, all I wanted was to be a mother . . . I spent 32 years waiting for it to happen.

Now it's hard to remember life without these three little ones!

Happy Mother's Day :)

While My Back Was Turned . . .

2011-05-05T16:53:00.000-07:00

The other day I thought I'd get ambitious and take down our Easter decorations while Janae and Alaina played quietly in the living room.

By Easter decorations, I'm talking about a couple of stuffed bunnies and some egg-shaped candles . . . how much trouble could two little girls get into?

Well.

After carefully balancing our festive items on top of the other stuff in our "holiday cupboard," I came downstairs to find Alaina had helped herself to the diaper cream.

After snapping a couple of pictures I ran into the kitchen to get the paper towels.

While I was gone, Alaina got out the baby powder and finished the job--sprinkling it all over the items she'd covered with diaper cream, of course.

Later that day I must have had some kind of memory lapse, because I decided it would be a good idea to look up a few Mother's Day gift ideas online while Alaina and Janae colored. Not two minutes later, Janae informed me, "Alaina is drawing all over with markers!"

Sure enough, she'd drawn all over her hands, arms, neck, shirt and pants. With markers. (I swear she had only had crayons when I'd looked away.)

I took her into the bathroom and was surprised at how easily the ink came off (Janae had drawn on her hands with the same markers a few days earlier, and I'd scrubbed and scrubbed without success).

It was then that I realized the diaper cream residue had probably acted as a barrier and prevented the ink from seeping in.

It was apparently our lucky day :)

I honestly used to wonder about mothers who claimed their children had got into such trouble when they'd been left alone for only a minute . . . but now I am convinced that a minute is all it takes.

The only time it's safe to turn my back on Alaina is when she's asleep . . . and even then in might be safer to have Benjamin and Janae take turns keeping watch!

How else will I ever get anything done?

Lost and FOUND

2011-05-03T21:59:00.000-07:00

Janae has a LOT of stuffed animals, but her favorite one by far is a pink and purple kitty named Seraphina.

Seraphina has been most places we've been--the school, the park, the grocery store, the library, the church, Grandma's house and dance class.

So, when we realized she was missing a couple of weeks ago, we had lots of places to look. We called or visited everywhere we could remember going, but nobody had Seraphina.

At first I thought, "Janae has so many toys--she can live without Seraphina," but then--of course--I wondered what kind of mother would take such a calloused approach to the loss of her middle child's favorite kitty . . . and decided to look for a replacement.

I went back to the store where Santa had found the cat who would become known as Seraphina, but all the pompom kitties had been sold.

I tried the online Webkinz store, and found that Seraphina's particular model had been sold out there, too.

Being the industrious little sister that she is, Alaina came up with a solution: she started calling one of her stuffed kitties Seraphina (just "Phina," actually) and giving it hugs and kisses in front of Janae :)

Anyway, we'd all given up hope. Then tonight, Janae was playing upstairs and we suddenly heard a very loud, very high-pitched scream.

"I FOUND SERAPHINA!!!!!!!"

Janae had stuffed her into the back of a princess carriage--it must have been the only place we hadn't looked!

After all we'd been through, it was wonderful to see this kitty again. Hopefully she and Janae will have some sweet dreams snuggled up together tonight :)

Not Much Chance of Cinderella Eating My Daughter (Darth Vader Might Have More Luck with My Son . . . )

2011-05-01T19:42:00.000-07:00

A week or so ago I finished reading a book called Cinderella Ate My Daughter . . . and I have been thinking about it ever since.

I thought about it when I found Janae lying in bed, teeth brushed and face washed, but somehow sporting shimmering pink lip gloss . . . and not just a little bit. When I asked her how she’d put on make-up in bed, she showed me the lipstick stashed under her pillow—so she could look dazzling even at night.

I thought about it when one-year-old Alaina picked up a doll and said “dance,” then started singing a Selena Gomez song featured in the Tinker Bell movies . . . and again when Janae asked me if we have any "booty shorts" (I was relieved to learn--as you will be, too--that she didn't actually know what they were, seeing as how she is only FOUR!)

As the mother of two young girls, and a self-declared feminist, I really related to this book . . . at least at first.

I came across Cinderella Ate My Daughter (published in 2009 by Peggy Orenstein, a journalist who is also the mother of a little girl) in a magazine that featured the book and provided a summary. I loved the title and wondered how accurately it would describe the way princesses have affected (and will affect) my own girls (especially since Alaina calls all princesses “Cinderella”!).

I was fascinated by what I learned about the Disney Corporation, the history of the Princess movement, and also today’s toy industry (the book was very well researched). I was surprised at how manipulated I have been, thinking—for example—that there were certain things my daughters had to have.

Most mothers would admit that little girls growing up today are bombarded with pink and plastic . . . and they might wonder how these little girls could possibly grow up learning that who they are and what they do/think/feel is more important than what they look like.

These issues are at the center of the book. And I was completely on board until I got about three-quarters of the way through.

After that, I got a little annoyed. The author, who really is quite witty, just seemed a little too proud of herself and her observations. She seemed a little too critical of others’ attitudes, even while sections of the book almost promoted the very products and ideals she was criticizing.

The last straw for me was when she compared The Little Mermaid to Rapunzel, and got the story lines wrong :)

After that, I found a few more problems with the book, including the author’s vision of what would be better for young girls (she was sad that the "Courtney Love era" was cut short by the introduction of Spice Girls-fashioned "girlfriend" power, because she saw real potential for a hard-core style of girl that was tough but also feminine . . . not really my ideal, I have to admit).

Anyway, in the end I felt that she was pointing the blame in the wrong place. I don’t think Cinderella is to blame, after all. Maybe it’s just me (I do happen to like Cinderella, as well as Belle, Ariel, Aurora, Snow White, Tiana, and even Pocahontas and Mulan!), but I think the Disney Corporation is no more guilty than any other corporation of corrupting our daughters.

I think the problem is with materialism in general (ah, yes, my favorite place to lay blame), closely tied with the media and peer orientation. (Don’t worry—I will not go into much more detail than that.)

I started to feel that even the entire concept of the book itself was a bit sexist, since the problem is really not limited to girls but affects boys as well--as the mother of a young son, I would say equally.

Orenstein argues, for example, that girls’ choices of toys/stories are often limited to princesses, ballerinas, butterflies, and fairies . . . but if you’ve ever looked for items with young boys’ themes, they are mostly sports, Superheros or vehicles. (And, by the way, have you ever tried to find a Father’s Day card that didn’t focus on golf? It’s not that easy!)

Anyway, this book got me thinking . . . and I did put the Thomas the Tank Engine sheets on Janae’s bed (rather than her pink flowered ones) and got out the Sesame Street coloring book for Alaina, rather than the My Little Pony one . . . but it was just for fun!

My girls do have a brother, so they play a lot more pirates, Star Wars, wrestling, and trains than my sisters and I ever did.

And, for the record, all three of them would rather watch The Muppet Show than anything else, thanks to their dad.

But in the end, I think my girls will be girls--smart girls, pretty girls, well-rounded girls of many interests--and I'm definitely okay with that.

I may just need to confiscate some of the lip gloss . . . and the booty shorts, too, if it ever comes to that :)

Alaina's Ultimate HP Experience

2011-04-17T20:03:00.000-07:00

Jason and I are both big Harry Potter fans, and over the past year or so we have been reading the first three books with Benjamin.

The other day Ben thought it would be fun to act out the first book while one of us video taped. He assigned us roles, Jason being Hagrid, Janae Aunt Petunia, Alaina the baby Harry Potter and Ben--of course--the boy Harry. (Ben is actually quite good at casting!)

I got to be all the other parts from behind the video camera, which suited me just fine (this was, in fact, my idea!).

To make our production more realistic, we decided to have Alaina lie in a baby carrier that the girls use for their dolls. Alaina was a little long for it, but she didn't seem to mind.

When we'd shot the scene, Jason put down the carrier so Alaina could get out, but she stayed in. Then we started on with the rest of the show. We had to stop almost right away, though, because Alaina was crying so loudly.

It turned out that she wanted Jason to keep carrying her in the bassinet. He did this throughout the rest of the production (even though it didn't make sense in the story), and Alaina stayed very still and quiet.

The next day she brought Jason the carrier again and insisted on being walked around.

I think she not only enjoyed her part in the play but also definitely shows great potential as a future Harry Potter fan :)

Little Mamas

2011-04-17T19:35:00.000-07:00

From the time she was about six months old, Alaina has loved dolls. Janae had several "babies" who had been pretty much neglected from the time they arrived . . . now Alaina is making things right by giving them the care they always needed,

and, of course, lots of motherly love.

Lately, though, Janae has found her own way to be a little mama--not just with dolls, but with her kitties.

Grandma made Janae some doll clothes, and she has become much more interested in her baby princesses now that she can change them into different outfits.

But Janae soon found a way to apply her love of changing clothes to her love of cats :) Now her kitties are dressing for the ball in fancy dresses, for the winter in cozy sweaters and hats, and for bed in flannel PJs.

It's so fun to watch my little mamas at work :)

Some Thoughts on Turning 29

2011-04-14T16:33:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I celebrated my 29th birthday* (*age might be off by one number . . .). The day kind of came in like a lion and out like a . . . more tamed lion. The main thing, though, is that it is now over . . . which means I am breathing a sigh of relief.

You see, I am not crazy about my birthdays (I do, of course, really enjoy other people’s birthdays, no matter what their age), but I especially dislike turning ages that end in “9.” I have found over the years that these are even worse than the round numbers that come next, marking the actual decade of getting older.

For example, when I was nearing the end of my first year of college (only 10 years ago—it’s hard to believe, isn’t it?), I turned 19. For weeks I dreaded this birthday, thinking 19 sounded so old . . . mostly because it meant I was only one year away from turning 20 (and YES, I do wish I could go back in time and slap my former self!).

The following year I actually did turn 20, and it wasn’t really that bad. Anticipating it was much worse.

The same happened when I turned 29. I was so upset about it, and worried about turning 30 for an entire year. When 30 actually came, it was rather a pleasant day—my students all signed a big card, sang to me, and even brought in a cake.

But that hasn’t happened yet, has it? For some reason I am seeing the future much more clearly than usual. Anyway, something to look forward to next year, I guess.

This year I am, unfortunately, exhibiting several signs of old age, including wrinkles, memory loss, the inability to eat whatever I want and not have it show, and—the obvious—compulsive lying.

Okay, I’ll admit it: I actually turned 39 yesterday. Which means next year I will be . . . well, we’ll just cross that bridge when we get to it, right?

Yikes!

Meet Our Moose

2011-04-09T16:41:00.000-07:00

I am the first to admit I've made a few mistakes as a parent. Not packing diapers when taking a baby on an airplane, letting Ben try on the pink stretchy pants, signing Janae up for ballet at age 2, selling the double stroller.

But all of these make me seem like the Mother of the Year compared to one mistake I have made . . . one of moose-sized proportion, you might say.

I was sitting in the living room on a windy fall afternoon, playing with 5-year-old Benjamin and 2-year-old Janae, when we heard a low honking sound. This sound is common in our house during the fall, winter, and even spring, as wind whips through our screen door.

This time, however, when I heard the wind I opened my eyes wide, looked at my two young, impressionable children, and--in a low voice--said, "That sounds like a MOOSE . . . an ANGRY MOOSE."

Benjamin and Janae opened their eyes extra wide, too, but they did something I hadn't anticipated: they started to tremble with fear.

"It's just the wind," I quickly assured them. But to no avail. From that moment on, the sound of the wind through our screen became known as "The Angry Moose."

I've tried reasoning with the kids, I've tried explaining that the moose has gone back to the forest--but The Angry Moose has remained, striking fear in my children every time (well, at least a little fear--Ben is getting pretty brave, even in the face of angry mooses).

To make the situation even worse, though, Ben and Janae have passed the legend of The Angry Moose, and the terror it inspires, down to their younger sister Alaina.

As soon as Alaina could talk, whenever she heard the sound she said, Mooo (meaning, of course, "moose") and made a frightened face.

With Alaina being so young, though, I saw my opportunity. I could set this right. I could be sure that at least one of my children was not scared of an angry moose that doesn't exist.

So, one day when we heard the wind, and Alaina said "Moose?" (her speech is really coming along!), I said--in the most cheerful and excited voice I could muster on two hours of sleep--"Yes . . . it's the FRIENDLY MOOSE!!!"

Alaina looked at me with a little uncertainty but then smiled.

Since then, I have been consistent in commenting on the Friendly Moose, The Happy Moose, the nice moose that comes to visit us. This has gone well, and Alaina and I now smile when we hear the moose. We've even started calling him "Mooska" :)

Then last week we were sitting at the table, having lunch, when we heard the Friendly Moose moan. Alaina turned to me with a big smile, and I said, "It's the Friendly Moose!"

Janae then frowned at me and said, "THE MOOSE IS NOT HAPPY . . . THE MOOSE IS MAD!!!!"

So there you have it. I've created an angry moose that will not go away, or even get cheered up.

Not exactly my proudest accomplishment. But possibly my most lasting one :)

Added to My List of Favorites (and maybe even to my collection . . .)

2011-04-07T17:08:00.000-07:00

There's nothing like a good book.

When I find a novel that

*forces me to skip ahead to the last page to see what happens,
*gets me thinking/worrying about the characters as though they were real people, or
*makes me give the book to Jason the moment it's finished so I can talk to him about it ASAP

. . . well, that's a good book.

I love it when I'm reading something I can't put down . . . and literally carry around everywhere I go in case I get a minute to read here or there. And it's not really unusual for me to feel this way about what I'm reading.

Once in a while, though, I like a book even MORE than all that . . . and then I have to add it to my list of all-time favorites. There is simply no other choice!

Until yesterday, the last time this had happened was February 2008 when I read A Thousand Splendid Suns.

Yesterday, however, everything changed when I finished The Book Thief. Yes, the universe as we knew it ceased to exist as my list of favorite novels was extended by one :)

Seriously, though, this was a good book!

The overall concept of the book is unique and artistic, the story is thought-provoking and nicely paced, even the sentences are beautifully crafted--but the depth and believability of the characters is what I found most incredible.

The back cover calls The Book Thief "the most talked-about book of 2006," so this might be old news to most of you . . . and it does make me feel a little behind the times (where have I been?), but for anyone (like me) who hasn't encountered it yet . . . it is my humble opinion that you should read it!

I think I might even have to steal the book from the person who lent it to me and become a book thief myself just to show my enthusiasm for the novel.

It is that good :)

What's in the Pool?

2011-03-30T19:52:00.000-07:00

This afternoon Ben and Janae had their second swimming lesson of the season at our local rec center, and I thought it might be fun to take Alaina into the pool.

As often happens on these occasions, a child who was swimming alone came up and started showing me all the tricks she could do.

As also often happens on these occasions, the little girl was very interested in Alaina.

Something a little different this time, though, when I asked her name, she said it was "Aleena." (Incidentally, when Janae joined us, the little girl mentioned that her last name was "Janae." I'm guessing that her middle name was Benjamin, but I can't be sure, since I didn't ask.)

The final effect Alaina and I often have on children is that they start telling us their life stories . . . and sometimes even those of their parents and extended family, within moments of meeting.

This little girl, Aleena, might have waited a few minutes longer before letting us know: "My mom has ringworm, really bad. I have it, too, but not really bad. The doctor said I should not go to school, though, until Monday."

Today is Wednesday.

Another argument against public swimming, I guess :)

Hopefully, along with the ringworm, we were swimming in A LOT of CHLORINE!!!

Three or Four

2011-03-26T22:22:00.000-07:00

Most of the time there isn’t much difference between three and four:

I ate three or four cookies.
We have to leave in three or four minutes.
I’ve been there three or four times.
I need to lose three or four pounds.

Was it three or was it four? It doesn’t really matter; they are virtually the same.

Other times, though, there is a big difference between three and four.

Especially when it comes to how many children one is going to have.

When it comes to other people’s families, three or four children might seem almost the same ("they have three or four kids"), but when you have three children, and you are almost at that unmentionable age after which you don’t usually want to think about having another one, well, there is a difference, and you just have to decide.

When I was pregnant with Alaina I VOWED that I would never have another baby. The day I brought her home from the hospital, though, I was already thinking I would like to have one more. Jason, of course, thought I was INSANE, but I have talked to other moms who seem to understand.

Anyway, in the almost 19 months since then, I have probably debated this issue in my mind at least a hundred times . . . per day. I just don’t know if we should stick with three or have a number four.

Of course, I do realize I could decide on four and end up with just three, or decide on three and end up with four. In either case, I could end up with FIVE if you take twins into account (I prefer not to, but I thought I’d better throw that in there, since I am trying to be thorough!).

Still, it is wise to go through the pros and cons.

So, here it goes:

THREE is a nice round number. A lot of things come in threes—diamonds in my wedding ring, packs of Easter cream eggs, seatbelts in the back of many cars, leaves on most clovers.

I already have three, so this is also the path of least resistance: no more pregnancies with all their nausea, discomfort, gestational diabetes, constant worry, or money spent on maternity clothes; no attempts to rearrange all our rooms and stuff; no more adjustments to new members of the family or trying to divide my time among more little people; no need to replace all the baby items I have already given away/sold in an attempt to guarantee that I wouldn’t have another baby (seriously!).

This would--without a doubt--be the most sensible route to take.

FOUR, though, is a nice even number. I grew up in a family of four kids, so it’s sad to think of what life would have been like if my parents had stopped at three. I would get to have another little baby and another child to get to know and love. This would be the more exciting choice because it would bring change and then a lifetime of possibilities as the new baby grows.

It may sound like I am partial to four--maybe YOU are even considering having another baby just reading this! However, I must add that the mere thought of it makes me tired beyond description.

Four has a few cons: I have been pregnant and/or nursing for almost five years now (without even ONE day off!) and wonder if it would be wise to add yet another 2-3 years (I know I have no-one but myself to blame for this, but even I have to wonder sometimes if enough is enough . . .).

I also haven’t slept more than 3 hours at a time in the past year (and many nights total about 3 hours of sleep). If a person with three children is too tired to get out of bed most mornings, should this person consider having four? Probably not.

And then there is my age, to which I have already alluded (but will never actually say, you might have noticed). Am I already too old to have another one? Could I recover from another pregnancy?

So many questions, so few answers. Four is definitely the unknown.

So, three or four? What is my final answer?

I guess it’s three or four, or five if you account for twins.

But I have to admit, I am leaning towards three.

With these three, I'm sure I will be busy enough, don't you think?

We Gave Hockey a Try

2011-03-19T08:39:00.000-07:00

Last night our nephews Tyler and Trevor were playing hockey in a tournament--my sister Sheri called to see if we'd like to watch and we were really excited!

It was the first hockey game we'd seen all season . . . all year . . . maybe even all decade. We are not usually big hockey fans :) This was so fun, though, that I think we might even try it again!

The "big boys" (aged 5-7) looked so tiny on the ice. Tyler and Trevor are amazing skaters. Trevor was playing goalie, and at one point his brother skated over to give him some "tips"--so cute.

Janae had a good time running around the arena with her cousin Brooke.

As usual, a lot of time was spent chasing Alaina rather than watching the game. She loved having a new venue to explore--all made of concrete, too . . . perfect for climbing, right?

Benjamin left with a new enthusiasm for hockey, asking if he could learn to play. Janae asked if we could go to Tyler and Trevor's games "every day."

I think we have finally discovered Canada's favorite sport :)

My Hubby's Happy Green Birthday

2011-03-17T18:52:00.000-07:00

It's fun having a husband who was born on St. Patrick's Day! This year I convinced Jason to take the day off of work and have a day of fun with the family :)

We talked about going to Victoria, but decided that might be too much with our three little kids. I suggested Science World, where we would get to see an IMAX film about a space telescope called Hubble. It was incredible!

Science World is always lots of fun, too.

I think my kids had all the shades of green covered.

And, if that wasn't colorful enough, volunteers were doing face painting in the kids area. Janae couldn't resist, and came out wearing a rainbow!

Ben was really disappointed that we wouldn't be going on a ferry, so yesterday I did a little research to see if we could find a smaller ferry, where we could go on a shorter ride. I found . . . the Aquabus :)

You can't get much smaller than that! It leaves from right outside of Science World and goes to Granville Island. And . . . it is mostly green!

It was so small that the driver let Ben and Janae have turns at the wheel.

I hadn't been to Granville Island before. It has lots of interesting little shops. Benjamin even got to do "the pigeon" there.

Before we went home we made sure Jason got back to his "roots."

After a full day, we came home, ordered dinner and had a shamrock birthday cake. Then Jason suggested watching Star Wars . . . which went over very well.

It was a happy birthday and a happy St. Patrick's Day all around.

Big Nursery Girl?!

2011-03-13T15:52:00.000-07:00

We all know that Alaina is easy-going,

independent,

fun-loving and free-spirited,

but who whould have guessed that she would go to the nursery on her own?

Last week Alaina turned 18 months, which meant that technically we could leave her in the nursery at church for the hour and a half that Jason, the other kids, and I have our own classes to attend. Neither Ben nor Janae did this, however, until they were almost three . . . and a half.

Today I went with Alaina to the nursery as I'd done most weeks since she was born (we used to attend with Janae). Once she was settled, though, I thought I'd try leaving for a few minutes to see what happened.

I waited outside the room, peeking in through a little window at the top of the door every few seconds.

Finally Jason found me and took me to our Sunday School class. After 10 minutes or so of watching the door (sure someone would be bringing my screaming baby back to me), I left the class to walk down the hall by the nursery.

Alaina was still playing happily.

I repeated this compulsive act several times throughout the next hour, realizing I didn't know what to do when my children functioned without my help. I was much more comfortable when they were screaming and refusing to stay.

Finally, 15 minutes before the end of church, one of the nursery leaders came to the door with Alaina. I couldn't help but smile a little to myself. This was what I'd been waiting for.

But no. Alaina wasn't screaming, crying, or even frowning. She just needed a diaper change.

It's a good thing she's not potty trained yet :)

After the change (which unfortunately included the end of her undershirt and tights for the day) Alaina went back to the nursery and stayed until the end.

What a big girl!

Copper Kitty

2011-03-11T20:16:00.000-08:00

On Wednesday Ben and Janae had a dentist appointment about an hour after Ben's school day ended. To pass the time in between, we stopped at my mom and dad's house. Ben loves hearing his grandpa's stories and the girls love talking to grandma and playing with all the toys.

This time, though, the pirate in my boy came through. As Ben was having a snack in the kitchen he noticed my mom's extensive collection of copper jelly molds. My mom has molds of all shapes and sizes--animals, hearts, fruits, fish--displayed high up on the kitchen walls.

Ben asked Grandma if he could have one, and she said yes. Ben chose a kitty cat, which he joyfully carried to the van as we left.

A few minutes later we were riding the elevator up to our dentist's office. A man got onto the elevator just after we did, and Ben immediately turned to him, looked up and said, "My Grandma gave me copper." The man smiled politely, gave me a bit of a confused look, and said, "That's good."

Later on at home, Jason came out of Ben's room holding the copper cat.

"What's this?" he asked.
"My mom gave it to Ben," I replied without even looking.
"Why?" was the obvious question.
"I think Ben wanted it for his pirate treasure collection," I explained.

Just before bedtime I realized Ben had the "sharing bag" for school the next day (that's what my generation used to call "Show and Tell," for anyone who might not know). "What are you going to take?" I asked my son, bracing myself for another broken Star Wars ship that we would have to re-build after school the next day.

"I have a great idea," Ben said, running up to his room. He came down with . . . you guessed it: the copper cat.

"Are you sure?" was all I could come up with to say.

I know kids sometimes take unusual things for sharing, but I doubt anyone has ever taken a jelly mold . . .

or loved a copper cat as much as Benjamin loves this one.

Hopefully it is safe to assume that this is just a phase and that it, too, shall pass :)

An Amazing Story I Almost Got to Finish

2011-03-10T16:06:00.000-08:00

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Today is Thursday, which means it was library day.

On Thursday mornings we leave our usual activities behind

(which is often a welcome break), and head to our local library for storytime. We enjoy browsing for books, looking for fun DVDs, and chasing Alaina around.

Sometimes it's my favorite day of the week.

This week, however, I was dreading Thursday because I was frantically trying to finish an amazing book I had for only two weeks :)

The book was Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand. It told the true story of a man named Louis Zamperini, who started out as somewhat of a juvenile delinquent then became an Olympic runner and a World War II soldier, then a prisoner of war.

When I started reading Unbroken I wondered if I would like it, because the author used an objective, journalistic style (I usually prefer a first-person narrative style). It only took a couple of chapters, though, for me to feel drawn into the story.

As I got further into the book, I even told Benjamin and Janae about some of the incredible experiences Zamperini lived through, including being shot down from a plane and living on an inflatable raft for an extraordinary amount of time--without food or water--and all the while being pursued by sharks and/or enemy gunfire (I don't want to give too much away!). After the experience on the raft, he lived over two years in a prison camp--once again enduring things I could hardly believe.

I had to leave out many of the gruesome parts, but I still had both children wide-eyed and completely enthralled.

Unbroken took the author seven years to research and write--it is well documented (with footnotes explaining many of the story's details and giving additional information about minor incidents) and has a part at the end that describes Hillenbrand's interviews with Zamperini and several other prominent figures in the story. I learned a lot about World War II and also about what human beings are capable of living through.

In fact, this morning, when I had to put on jeans that were slightly damp from the dryer, I halted my complaints, thinking about what people living in war camps had to endure (How about the same pants you'd been wearing for over two years while mining coal and cleaning outhouses . . . not to mention sleeping in fleas and eating worse than rotten food--and even that, only on good days?). It kind of puts things in perspective :)

Unfortunately, I had to skim the last hundred pages last night to find out all that happened. (This included some severe post-war trauma that Zamperini experienced and then finally overcame through his religious faith.)

I will have to request the book again so I can read the end of it in more detail.

Anyway, it is a book I would highly recommend!

Fun Turning Four

2011-03-05T18:55:00.000-08:00

I think Janae had a good time turning one,

turning two,

and turning three,

but I think she REALLY had fun turning four! She was so excited for her birthday this year, and her special day was about as good as a day could be.

She woke up to a present right beside her pillow from her big brother (which Benjamin had picked out and bought with his own money!). She opened it to find . . . Tinkerbell slippers!!

Then Janae helped me in the kitchen . . . to make a cake that looked at least remotely like her favorite stuffy, a kitty named Seraphina :)

Janae knew she was getting a swimming suit for her birthday, but I didn't know that once she tried it on there would be no getting it off of her--or putting anything on top. It is a unique time of life when one can attend her birthday party wearing nothing but a swimming suit . . . at least for most of us.

I did manage to get her into a princess dress for a little while :)

Janae had cake and opened more presents with both sets of grandparents, and two aunts, an uncle, and a few of her cousins. She got new dolls, puzzles, clothes, books, and a DVD, most of which had a Princess/Barbie/Hello Kitty theme, of course.

Even Janae's favorite Cinderella doll got a beautiful new dress, courtesy of Grandma.

Janae ended the evening watching Twelve Dancing Princesses . . . and Ben broke down and agreed to dance with her during the final song. What a great brother!

Reflecting on the past four years I have spent as Janae's mother, I have to say she is a girl who loves everything beautiful. She is full of emotion and creativity--and brings music and dancing into every day.

I am so grateful for my little "G" :)

Prenatal Programming?

2011-03-03T10:00:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I signed Benjamin up for a spring break robotics/Lego day camp.

It is interesting that my son has such a passion for robots, considering his background. And by background, I mean way back . . . before he was even born.

During my entire pregnancy with Benjamin I was teaching communications at a technical institute, and many of my students were studying robotics.

When I initially received this assignment I was more than just a little intimidated. I had never taught technical writing before, but—worse—I’d never even heard of robotics. (I had, of course, heard of robots and assumed that’s what it was all about).

Even after a bit of research, though, I had only a fuzzy idea of what my students would be studying outside of my class.

On the first day of school I actually gave them an in-class writing assignment to produce a one-sentence definition of robotics.

Unfortunately this was their first semester in the program and some of their ideas were even fuzzier than mine.

My second semester I had a different group of students who were taking their final courses in the intensive two-year program, and they really knew what robotics was.

I taught them how to write reports and make presentations on their final projects, then watched all the presentations and graded the reports. I learned a lot.

Benjamin was with me through it all, from the size of a sesame seed to the 7-pound-15- ounce boy who was born the day before the semester officially ended.

I think he was listening in.

I know people sometimes think that music played to developing babies makes a difference in their brains or that stories read to a fetus become lifelong favorites.

Is it more of a stretch to claim that a baby who listens in on robotics presentations has a natural inclination towards that field?

If this is so, we are very fortunate that Ben picked up only what he did, since at least 90 percent of my students were also chain smokers who were very fond of four-letter words.

The more I think about it, the more I think I might want to sit in on the first couple of days of Ben’s camp. After all, I was with him the first time. . . .

No Yelling, Screaming, or Shouting, Theoretically

2011-03-01T16:28:00.000-08:00

Throughout my parenting career—which spans more than seven years now if you count the time I was reading up on how to parent my soon-to-be son Benjamin—I have been known to consult a parenting book or two.

In fact, I do not think I am exaggerating when I say that I have probably read EVERY WORD that has been published on at least a couple of parenting topics, including getting babies/toddlers to sleep at night and how to wean a toddler (without finding anything really helpful in either case, unfortunately).

There are, however, many parenting books and articles that I have found very helpful, and dozens of topics that I have read very little about so far.

A couple of weeks ago we had a parenting class at our church, where a behavior therapist presented some information and then answered questions.

Since I arrived late and had to leave early, I was grateful the presenter had a handout . . . with a reading list. A reading list that comprised a number of books I hadn’t read or even heard of, several of which sounded not only interesting but helpful.

These included Raise Your Kids without Raising Your Voice, The Explosive Child, and Setting Limits with Your Strong-Willed Child.

As you might have noticed, there are a couple of parenting issues (besides sleep and weaning) that I have to admit I have been desperate for help on.

As soon as I got home, I went to our library website and requested these books, confident I would be first in line since—as I mentioned—I had left the meeting early :)

Within a week I had my books. As I surveyed the material, and then began an in-depth reading, I had to wonder where these books had been all my parenting life!

All three are excellent.

My favorite, though, which I highly recommend (and plan to buy and re-read constantly for the next few years), is Raise Your Kids without Raising Your Voice.

Anyone who has known me a long time might be puzzled by this. Not only am I not the type of person to scream and shout (being calm, serene, mild-mannered, and infinitely patient), but whenever I try to raise my voice . . . well, it doesn’t really work. All that comes out is a high-pitched squeak.

All I can say is JANAE (or—probably more fairly—being the mother of three small children including Janae).

Unfortunately my middle child has brought out the high-pitched squeak enough times that it’s had a bit of practice and almost does sound like a yell now.

Of course, I am not proud of this accomplishment and have thought there must be a better way to get my almost four-year-old daughter—who really is very sweet and small, and who needs love and patience as much as any other child—to listen and learn.

Anyway, this book not only outlines the damage that can be done by parents raising their voices, it also teaches parents how to prevent a lot of yelling, screaming and shouting.

This book also provides ways to increase positive interactions with children, the goal being to maintain a better relationship with them—since parents’ relationships with their children has turned out to be their only source of lasting influence on them.

Of course, there are still issues the book hasn’t fully solved for me, such as what to do if your children are shrieking in such a way that they cannot hear the parents’ calm, rational voice, or what to do if the parent asks the children to get into the van when late for school and the children continue to wander around in the front yard (just joking—neither of those ever happen with my kids!) .

So, if you hear high-pitched raised voices coming from our house . . . hopefully it will only be happy screams :)

Theoretically, it won’t be coming from me!

I Didn't Make the Cut

2011-02-28T09:48:00.000-08:00

It's no secret that I'm not much of a singer--and for the record, I have never claimed to be one.

In my youth I never signed up for choirs, took voice lessons, or tried out for musical theater productions. I don't even sing in the shower.

I do, however, enjoy singing. I just limit my vocal exercise to singing as part of the congregation in church and, of course, singing at home or in the car with my kids.

Or, at least, I used to.

Lately my girls have made it clear that I am NOT TO SING. NOT EVER.

For example, in the car we have a Disney Princess sing-along CD that has a song with words, followed by an instrumental version of the same song. The CD continues like this for 10 different songs.

This provides the perfect opportunity to . . . well, sing along, right?

Not for mom. Janae used to say, "MOM, STOP SINGING!!!!" But being the stellar parent I am, I have taught her to say, "Mom, could you just listen this time? I would like to sing this one alone." Janae now says this every time I open my mouth.

But what about when I am home alone with Alaina? Surely I could sing then.

Apparently not.

Yesterday I stayed home from church with Alaina because she had a fever and was throwing up. She was pale, sad, and limp, sitting on my knee. Then she mentioned a song that she really liked, a Christmas song called "The Friendly Beasts."

I will just have to back up a little to explain this one. Around Christmas time, Alaina became obsessed with a porcelain baby Jesus that was part of a nativity set. When we put the Christmas decorations away, she was looking all over for the baby Jesus, walking into rooms and saying, "Jesus?" with her little hands raised up in a questioning pose.

I remembered we had a little book about the nativity that we hadn't packed away--it had pictures of the baby Jesus in a manger, which seemed to satisfy Alaina. She carried the book around everywhere and had me read it all the time, until we somehow lost it.

The words of the book were from the old song "The Friendly Beasts," which I happened to know from a kids' CD we had once owned but had also mysteriously lost.

It goes like this:

Jesus our brother kind and good
Was humbly born in a stable rude,
And the friendly beasts around him stood
Jesus our brother kind and good.

It then tells a story from the point of view of each animal in the stable. For example:

"I," said the donkey shaggy and brown
"I carried his mother uphill and down;
I carried her safely to Bethlehem town."
"I," said the donkey shaggy and brown.

It has similar verses for a cow, sheep, rooster, dove, and even camel.

Anyway, I started singing this for Alaina yesterday, then thought, "I wonder if I could find that CD."

Since I was trapped at home with a sick baby and nothing else to do, I started looking. Unable to find it, though, I thought of Youtube.

I looked up "Friendly Beasts," and it was there, along with a little puppet show that made those old Teletubbies videos look like Oscar-level performances. It even added a cat with glowing eyes to the song and had the entire manger swaying back and forth!

Alaina wanted to watch the video--which she called "Jesus bro-der tind and dood"--over and over again.

When the rest of the family came home I had them watch it--and they, of course, wanted to see it over and over again, too.

Jason, though, thought it was a little creepy. He said that the elderly woman singing the song sounded as though she would "keel over and die at any moment," which was true (although not very nice).

Anyway, later in the evening, Alaina continued to ask for the song, crying "Jesus! Jesus!"

Since we'd already turned off the computer, I thought she might be satisfied by her mother singing the song--as I had done for her until that morning.

As I held Alaina in the rocking chair and started to sing, she shouted, "NO! NO SINGING!" Then she cried again for the song.

I was more than a little offended that she thought the woman on the Youtube video sounded better than I did.

I guess we know who's going to be doing the singing around our house from now on!

Chocolate Chip Waffles, Anyone?

2011-02-15T13:59:00.000-08:00

One of my favorite things to do is bake. I love to look up recipes and try new ones. Unfortunately, my children are among the pickiest of picky eaters and they HATE trying new things. Even things that I know they would like and that look like they’d be good—if they’re not familiar, it is unlikely any of my little ones will try them.

But chocolate chip waffles, I thought, would be different.

A few weeks ago we were reading a story where a little boy was able to choose whatever he wanted for breakfast, and he chose chocolate chip waffles.

I thought that sounded good, although obviously devoid of nutritional value.

I’d never had chocolate chip waffles or pancakes before and—if the truth be told—had kind of wondered about moms who served that kind of stuff for breakfast.

Still, Valentine’s Day was coming, and I thought it might be fun to have something kind of different and chocolatey (see how desperate I am to exercise some cooking creativity?).

I decided to make the waffles Sunday afternoon, since getting up extra early on a Monday is not really in my realm of possibility (being the mother of a toddler who still gets up 3-5 times a night).

I looked up some recipes, shopped for the ingredients (mini chocolate chips, sugar, whipping cream . . . ), and became slightly obsessed with my upcoming project.

I opted to make a double recipe so we could have the leftover waffles for breakfast on Valentine’s Day. Chocolate for breakfast . . . surely that would be a hit.

But I guess I wouldn’t be writing about it if it was, would I?

All three of my children turned up their noses at the waffles—the chocolate chip waffle perfection, all golden brown and smelling like the waffle cones in an ice cream shop.

I topped them with whipped cream and sprinkled on a few more chocolate chips, but still they were refused.

Benjamin—who hates to disappoint his mama—finally agreed to try one, but before he was finished a single waffle he said he had a stomach ache and asked to leave the table.

I could honestly not understand it. My children love chocolate chips, they love waffles, they even love whipped cream. So why would they not eat this?

Fortunately I have a husband who also loves chocolate and who doesn’t mind trying new things as long as chocolate is involved. But unfortunately Jason has been trying to eat healthier lately and was only able to eat two waffles without feeling he’d compromised his new dietary principles.

So . . . I have almost finished eating a double batch of chocolate chip waffles, and I must say I am not enjoying them as much as I did when I started eating them.

Still, I have to admit I have tucked away the recipe and may even try it again.

After all, Easter is coming, and what would be better for breakfast on Easter morning than a stack of chocolate chip waffles, topped with whipped cream?

Just maybe not a double batch. . . .

And I trust that although my children do not appreciate my efforts in the kitchen they will be fully supportive of my new exercise program :)

No Need to Worry about Janae . . .

2011-02-11T21:04:00.000-08:00

I know I painted a pretty bleak picture for Janae in my last post--what with her apparent use of a tooth blackening kit and all--but after a little conversation I had with my daughter today, I don't think there is any need to worry about how the tooth is affecting her self-image.

Janae and I were reading Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, and we got to the part where the wicked queen hears the mirror say Snow White is fairer than she is. The queen, of course, orders that a huntsman destroy Snow White.

At this point, Janae stopped me to ask, "Why did the queen want to destroy Snow White?"

I answered, "Because she wanted to be the most beautiful, and she could only be the most beautiful if Snow White was gone."

Then Janae said, "But what about ME? I'm beautiful!!"

Of course, I assured Janae that Snow White's stepmother lived a long time ago . . . and she didn't know about Janae.

Janae thought about this and then said, "But if she did know about me, she would have to destroy me, too!"

I think she is pretty secure in her beauty. I guess teeth aren't everything :)

Curse of the Black Tooth

2011-02-07T21:45:00.000-08:00

Teeth. I didn't know the kind of trouble they could cause until I became a parent.

First it's the teething, then the battles over tooth brushing, then the visits to the dentist, then the sedation recommended for children's fillings.

There's always something to keep moms up at night worrying.

With my kids, though, there seems to be a disturbing trend that goes right along with our "Swashbuckling Sea Songs."

It started one morning walking Ben home from preschool. You might remember he was climbing on a gate, did an unexpected somersault, and landed on his front teeth.

I took him to the emergency room, the doctor (twice), and the dentist, only to discover that our best case scenario was that the tooth would remain a dismal shade of dark gray, rather than turning completely black before it fell out in a year or two.

We could have sprung for a baby root canal and some internal bleaching, which might have lightened the gray a little, but there was no guarantee.

After seeking several opinions, engaging in much debate, shedding many tears, and recovering from the recurring nightmares, I thought, "It will be okay. Ben is a boy. He wants to be a pirate. He can live with a slightly gray tooth for a few more months."

Of course, the tooth fell out at the beginning of kindergarten, and I could finally relax.

The next day my two-and-a-half-year-old Janae fell down the cement stairs outside the door to the kindergarten room at Ben's school.

After the swelling went down, Janae seemed okay. No lasting damage seemed to have been done!

Several months later, though, I noticed one of Janae's front teeth seemed darker than it should be. Within a week it was definitely gray.

I made an emergency dentist appointment with every intention of scheduling a baby root canal, internal bleaching, external bleaching, plastic surgery . . . whatever it would take. I had my Visa and my Mastercard ready.

Only to hear that there was nothing we could do but wait until the tooth came out on its own.

Janae was only THREE. The tooth would not come out for literally YEARS.

I expressed my concern to the dentist. (You know dentists, right? They WANT our money!)

She calmly assured me the tooth was healthy, the gums were fine, the x-rays showed no damage.

Finally I broke down and asked the burning question, "What can I say to people who wonder why she has a black tooth?"

Dr. Tsang simply said, "Tell them she fell down."

Right.

My other burning question: "What about all the people who DON'T ask and just assume Janae has a negligent mother who feeds her candy all the time and doesn't brush her teeth?" That's what I was really wondering.

Putting my own reputation and self-interest aside, though, I really worried, and still worry, about how the dark gray tooth will affect Janae's self-esteem.

While Benjamin is a boy who likes to play pirates, Janae is a girl who likes to play pirates only occasionally. Her real dream is to be a beautiful princess, or a ballerina.

But every time I look at her tooth, it seems darker.

It is like a family curse. The curse of the black tooth.

Now you might think I am getting ahead of myself. What about Alaina, you might ask. She doesn't have a black tooth. She has a beautiful smile.

Trust me, it is only a matter of time.

We've Got Pigtails!

2011-02-01T12:26:00.000-08:00

Well, it's taken almost 17 months, but we finally got all that fluffy white hair into a set of pigtails!

Unfortunately, Alaina thought her sister should have some pigtails, too . . .

I got the impression Janae felt she'd already put in her time with that hairstyle :)

Something About the Hired Help

2011-01-27T15:56:00.000-08:00

It is no secret that my kids LOVE having a landscaper for a dad (for those of you who don't know, Jason runs a charitable landscaping organization).

Benjamin started playing grass-cutting while he was still in a diaper (there IS a diaper under that shirt!),

and one of his first words was "ass," meaning--of course--"grass."

One of his second or third words was "Eese," meaning--of course--Reece, one of Jason's first employees. But I'll get to that in a minute.

Janae also learned gardening at an early age, holding a plastic shovel before she even knew how to put on chapstick.

Understandably she preferred to tend the flowers, rather than cut the grass or ride around in a truck,

but she was also very aware of Jason's employees, most of whom have been teenage boys from our church (and their friends).

For example, one day--through our window--she saw a teenager (let's call him Nolan), who worked with Jason only a few days. Immediately Janae vowed that this was the man she would someday marry.

She was convinced that another one of Jason's employees was actually Prince Phillip.

Now it seems to be Alaina's turn. Like her siblings she enjoys digging in the dirt, raking up leaves, and pretending to cut the grass.

And like her siblings, she is OBSESSED with Jason's employees.

One employee in particular has caught her eye. We will call him Matt . . . or as Alaina likes to call him MATTTTTTTTT (she really emphasises the "T"!).

You might be saying "obsessed" is too strong a word to use when describing behavior demonstrated by a one year old, but let's see what you think after I've explained.

Most mornings Matt comes to our home to meet Jason for work. As soon as the two of them leave, Alaina stands at the front door saying, "Matttt!" Not Daddy, or even Bumpa (her new word for Grandpa)--who she has also been known to look for at the door--but Matt.

This would be bad enough, but throughout the rest of the day whenever Alaina passes the door she stops, looks at it, and says, "Matttt?"

Even this would be easy to overlook if Alaina didn't also say Matt whenever she got into the van, finished her lunch, or woke up from a nap.

She really has Matt on her little mind!

It started me thinking . . . if Jason continues this trend of hiring teenage boys, it is going to supply my daughters with a constantly renewable source of potential, possibly inappropriate, crushes, not only throughout toddlerhood, but throughout all their childhood and even teenage years.

At that point what will be stopping them from dating or even marrying the help?

Seeing my girls growing up with such a rugged outdoorsman for a father (picture taken at a U-Catch trout farm), I'm sure this is only to be expected.

But, it's convinced me: we've got to start thinking about who we hire :)

By the way, I just finished reading a novel called The Help, set in Jackson, Mississippi, during the civil rights movement. Because of this, I need to assure you that I use the term "hired help," in only the most light-hearted and amicable way :)

The Stomach Flu: There is Nothing Like It!

2011-01-26T09:55:00.000-08:00

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We are just getting over the stomach flu (I hope!), and I have to say there is nothing like it!

There is nothing like the flu to

make me realize how neglectful I have been of our bathroom baseboards

remind me how much I enjoyed the first six months of each of my pregnancies

cause me to wonder why I haven't weaned Alaina

help me feel better about putting off making an appointment to have our carpets and couches professionally cleaned

show me how much I need my husband's help

give me hope of getting through the really thick library book I only have for two weeks

make me think bunk beds were not such a good idea after all

get me to feel sorry for my kids and even bend the TV rules--I think they watched FIVE DVDs yesterday . . . all quality educational programming, of course ;)

convince me that kids in Grade One do a lot of work at school every day (Ben has some catching up to do!)

ensure that I will never get caught up on the housework

test that theory about being only "a stomach flu away" from my goal weight.

Almost makes you wish YOU had the stomach flu, doesn't it?

But seriously, there is nothing like the stomach flu to make me appreciate how good it feels to NOT have the flu once it is all over.

We are all looking forward to that :)

No More Babies?!

2011-01-20T17:38:00.000-08:00

Recently I have realized that I sometimes suffer from denial when it comes to my kids.

A good example would be the way I view Alaina. Even though she is almost 17 months old, I still have clothes in her drawer that are 3-6 months (they're not that much too small), I still try to cover her eyes so she won't watch TV with her siblings (need to think about that brain development), and sometimes I still even call her my "little newborn."

But the evidence is growing that Alaina is . . . not really a baby anymore.

Janae has taught her how to put on make-up

and to cook

so well that she's even trying it on her own.

Ben has taught both of the girls to build with Lego (his own little clone factory?)

and Alaina, specifically, how to read . . . so well that she now reads to her babies on a regular basis.

When a baby can put on make up, cook, build with Lego and READ, it's probably time to acknowledge that she is growing up.

We decided to celebrate this growth by setting up Alaina's toddler bed (Ben and Janae were both out of their cribs by 16 months, and they both started sleeping better after that).

The first thing our toddler did was try to dimantle the crib with Daddy's drill;

the second was climb into her new bed and read a book to Elmo.

What a big girl!

So I guess it's official: we no longer have a baby in our house, and probably will not again.

Although there is that small matter of a Christmas gift we received from one of our neighbors. . . .

Hmmmmm.

Denial?

No Match for the Tooth Fairy

2011-01-12T16:22:00.000-08:00

We always hear about how good Santa is at navigating through storms, finding children's houses, and showing up with just the right gift.

But what about the Tooth Fairy?

Benjamin has been putting her to the test, and so far she has really come through!

Benjamin lost his first tooth in the usual way: sitting at home, wiggling it out.

Since then, though, he has mixed it up a bit.

His second tooth came out at the hospital, moments after he'd met his baby sister Alaina. Even with his mother recovering in the maternity ward, Ben managed to keep track of the tooth, take it home, and put it under his pillow.

The Tooth Fairy brought him a $5 bill. Pretty good.

For the third tooth, Ben set up an unprecedented challenge: he lost it around the fire at a Father/Son campout--in the middle of the forest with no moms around.

Not really a place you'd expect to find a Tooth Fairy, right?

Well, it turns out that not just one but several tooth fairies were fluttering around, offering Ben's daddy loonies and toonies. By morning, Ben had a pile of change under his dirty, campfire-scented pillow. All it needed was a trip through the washing machine, and it was fit for any boy's piggy bank :)

I guess Benjamin thought if the Tooth Fairy could find him there, she could find him anywhere.

Tooth #4 came out one Sunday just before church. (This doesn't sound like much of a challenge, but when you consider that Ben's parents don't shop on Sundays, you have to wonder where the perfect amount of change was going to come from!)

Ben woke up the next morning with a loonie and a C-3PO action figure under his pillow. Not too shabby.

Then last night, the snow storm we've been waiting for all winter arrived. And Ben lost the tooth he'd been wiggling for weeks . . . AT SCHOOL! So exciting!

But, would the Tooth Fairy be able to find her way through the storm? She doesn't have Rudolf, you know.

She did! And this time, Ben got a loonie and a Han Solo action figure.

The next day school was cancelled because of all the snow.

So even weather that stops the buses is no match for the Tooth Fairy.

She must be quite the lady :)

Crossing the Line

2011-01-09T14:37:00.000-08:00

Janae has been known to cross a line or two in her time.

She is not afraid to cross the line when it comes to fashion,

safety,

or even appropriate play with Star Wars action figures (evident in this sighting of Qui-Gon Jinn hanging out in Janae's vanity).

Lately, though, my spunky almost four-year-old has been crossing the line when it comes to acceptable behavior in public, resulting in some pretty tense moments for her mother.

For example, the other day I had to interrupt one of Janae's activities to run an errand that had to be done right away (no, not returning library books . . .). Janae, who--as we all know--likes to dress up, was sporting shorts, tights and sandles.

I thought about asking her to change, but then thought I'd avoid a fight by just having her switch her sandles for boots. When Janae refused, I once again thought, "Not worth a fight," and opened the door to get her and Alaina into the van.

As soon as Alaina was strapped in, Janae started to say, "I WANT TO PUT ON MY BOOTS!!!"

Not wanting to take Alaina back into the house, I said, "Janae, we're only going out for a few minutes; don't worry about boots."

The entire 10 minutes we spent in the car, Janae full-out screamed "BOOTS!! BOOTS!!"

It moved from annoying to alarming to infuriating.

Finally, we got to our destination. Since Janae had flung her sandles somewhere in the van, I got out the stroller, opened the door, and tried to encourage her to get in (okay . . . maybe "encourage" isn't quite the right word here).

It kind of just went downhill from there.

Janae screamed and thrashed around in the stroller while everybody stared. Looking on the bright side, though, I didn't have a hard time tuning out the hysterical wailing for boots on the way home because by that time I was competely numb to it.

The next day ("always fresh with no mistakes in it," right?), I worked really hard to keep Janae calm, happy, and busy. She helped me cook, folded laundry, and played with Alaina. Everything seemed okay.

Then when we went to pick up Benjamin, Janae asked if she could say hello to one of the teachers. I said that would be fine and occupied myself with trying to keep Alaina from throwing off both of her boots into a mud puddle.

The next thing I knew, the teacher Janae had wanted to speak to was speaking to her in a very stern way. What had my daughter--the one who'd been on her best behavior all day--said? Something not very nice.

It has occurred to me, now, that Janae really is trying to discover where the line is . . . not necessarily in an attempt NOT to cross it, although hopefully that will be her objective eventually.

Since the events I've described, she and I have had several "talks," and I think we have made a little progress. Sometimes it is pretty discouraging, though.

This week I will be registering my little line-crosser for preschool. It will be the same school that Benjamin attended, so they will have some idea what is coming (from interacting with Janae in the waiting area, not from teaching Ben).

I guess we could just say that she's got a lot of character.

Still, I think I have a bit of work to do before September. . . .

New Stuff . . . It Just Isn't Me

2011-01-05T14:10:00.000-08:00

If you have seen me outside in the winter, you have seen my brown coat.

Almost a decade ago, I needed a brown coat to go with all my brown stuff, and I finally broke down and bought one. At first it was pretty nice--and several years later I even wore it for our family picture.

It's been to Whistler,

the Olympic sites,

the mall, the school, every park in our town, and many, many other places.

Lately, though, my brown coat has started to look a little worn and shabby. The outside (which isn't waterproof) looks too flat, the fake-sheep wool lining has lost its fluff, and the shape shows that I wore the coat during all three of my pregnancies.

The past few years I have vowed that after Christmas--when everything is on sale--I would buy a new coat. But I wasn't quite sure what style to buy and never found anything I really liked at a low enough price.

This year, however, I had an idea. I'd seen other moms wearing a longer style of coat that looked pretty warm and cozy.

After Christmas I tried going to the mall, but with Alaina trying to climb out of the stroller and Janae and Ben complaining, I left empty handed.

Then yesterday I got an email from one of the stores I sometimes frequent (just to check out the sale rack, of course), advertising 60 percent off of dresses and COATS.

Opening the email, I found lots of nice coats, including one that looked exactly like the one I had in mind--even down to the fur-trimmed hood--except it was black instead of brown.

Still, I thought maybe I'd go to the store and try a few coats on.

To make a really long story a little shorter, I ended up buying the coat--the last one in my size--at a pretty low price.

But all the way home I was tormented by this decision. I thought I could wear the coat to pick up Ben in the afternoon, but then thought, "What if he doesn't spot me right away . . . because I'm not wearing my brown coat?" I thought about what the other moms would think, seeing me in the very different coat. (I just like to blend in with my surroundings, I guess--hence, the brown coat.)

At home I tried the new coat on again and worried that it was too long, the sleeves fit a bit short, the shape didn't look right when I turned.

I thought I'd take the coat back.

Jason--who sometimes has to beg me to buy new clothes--thought I should keep it.

Janae--who loves anything new or flashy--told me I "need to wear" the new coat.

I think it's a bit ironic that while most people might feel embarrassed to wear the old brown coat (including myself at times, I might add), I feel embarrassed at the thought of wearing a new one.

I'm still not sure what to do about the black coat, but if you see me outside this winter, chances are I will be wearing my brown coat.

It's just more me :)