Have a Great July...

Highlights of my weekend (did I have a weekend? I don’t remember…this list could be harder than I thought!) and upcoming plans.

Ok, here goes:

• Giuliana’s first trip to the zoo. I had plans to take her to the larger Syracuse zoo for her first time out, so she’d actually be impressed, but it didn’t happen. So, we went to our local zoo on Saturday. The weather was actually perfect for it (I know! Unbelievable!) and she had fun. She had the most fun running up and down the paved walkways. Couldn’t care less about most of the animals. She pointed to the tigers on the sign and said “rooooowr” but when we saw the actual tigers…nothing. She did seem to like the little roadrunner that kept staring back at her through the fencing. Cute pics will follow one of these days.

• Also Saturday, grocery shopping and other exciting errands. And no nap. For anyone. It turned into a looooooooong afternoon.

• G had a slumber party with her Nana Saturday night. John and I had planned a “date night” that did not end up happening. We were both so exhausted that we didn’t even make it out to dinner. We ended up eating cereal at home, making cookies, and falling asleep. Awesome.

• Sunday morning=sleeping in! More Awesome. When we got up, John made bacon and eggs, his specialty, for breakfast. That was the extent of the “relaxing” part of our Sunday.

• We picked up G and her three cousins (5, 4, and 2 ½) at Nana’s house and carted them all back to our house for the day. John sister is getting married on Friday. Yeah, THIS Friday! EEEEK! So we watched her kids all-day so she could “finish up” about 15,291,024 things.
  

• The kids were really well behaved. Giuliana was not so much a fan of sharing all her toys and books. When we arrived home the kids dove right into playing and G ran around yelling at them and pulling drumsticks out of their hands so they couldn’t bang on her drums! 20 minutes later, while I was making lunch, I noticed her hiding behind the kitchen island, peaking around it and watching her cousins suspiciously. We have some work to do in the “sharing” department, I think!

• There was no nap on Sunday, either. Oh boy.

• We took the kids to the creek to let them “skip” rocks and get their feet wet. You know how this turned out, right? Three soaking wet children who did not have a change of clothes. Eh, they dry.

• Grandpa came over during dinner (how does he ALWAYS know when it’s dinner time?!) and all four kids got a little wound. Drinks were being spilled all over, greasy pizza hands leaving little sticky fingerprints on everything. I made the executive decision that we needed to vacate to the park ASAP. We rode the carousel, played in the sandbox, rode the swings, it was definitely a good call. I love the fact that we have a park just around the corner from our house.

• After the cousins left it was bath and bedtime. Giuliana let out some warbling cries to vent about her exhausting weekend, then promptly PASSED OUT.

• John and I didn’t last much longer than she did.

• Tonight, MY cousin is coming by to finish her “observation” of G for her Early Childhood Development class at the local college.

• Thursday evening/ Friday during the day we help get everything set up for the wedding.

• Friday evening is the wedding!!

• Saturday…maybe a day off, I don’t know yet. Somehow, I think it will get filled up.

• Sunday is my family picnic with my brother and sister-in-law (Andy and Kristin) who are coming up from Georgia. This is their first vacation home with their two kids. I haven’t even met my niece yet (she’s almost 2, four months older than G.)

• Monday G and I are going to the lake with Andy, Kristin and the kids.

• Tuesday it’s back to work, but leaving early to go to the Discovery Center with my mom, Kristin, and all the kids. Then dinner at our house, maybe a trip to the park or creek. And another chance for G to learn to share her toys!
  

• Wednesday dinner at our house again with all of my family for more of the same.
  

• Friday is date night with our friends Nick and Kate to finally see Harry Potter.

• Saturday is canning day with my lovely ladies.

Somewhere in there I have to squeeze a mani/pedi before the wedding and a trip to Walmart to buy G a life vest before the lake and make a dessert for the family picnic. Oh, and pick blueberries for our canning club.

So, as you see, I’ll catch ya in August!!

Hmmm, whacha think?

I don't know about these "canned" blog layouts. Sometimes they just seem too busy to me. What do you think of this one? Is it too hard on the eyes to read? Be honest. I need to change my banner, but can't do that from work, so that will change this weekend. I'm still not sure I'm sold. I was just getting bored. Give me some feedback. Thanks, yo!

Living In The Toddler 'Hood

In the insane, sleep-deprived early days of motherhood I subscribed to a slew of parenting and homemaking magazines for reasons that I cannot even begin to fathom at this older, wiser, even much more sleep-deprived state. I suppose I thought I might actually have time to read them. Ha. Younger self, you were a fool.

Anyhoo, these magazines keep coming faithfully every month, oblivious to the fact that they will simply be tossed unceremoniously in a pile awaiting the day when I need to grab something to tide me over at a doctor's appointment or feel like I'm going to be "upstairs" for a while, if you know what I mean. So, yesterday, when I actually had five minutes to myself, and used those five minutes to flip through a random mag from the pile, I was delighted to be rewarded with a fabulous, eye-opening, so-true-it-might-actually-be-gospel article.

After perusal of the Internet I found that the article was authored by this blogger and is actually part of this book, which is a compilation of bloggers! Serendipity, I think. If you go here and flip to the right 8 pages, past the Table of Contents to the first chapter, you can read this article in it's entirety. I considered just copying the whole thing for you here, but I felt wrong about breaking about 8 bijillion copyright rules, give or take a few.

So, now that you've been to the all the links and back, let me tell you why I was so elated. This woman has never met me. She has never met my daughter. Yet she composes this "Toddler Contract" that my daughter could have written, were she allowed to use the computer, or, you know, pens. That must mean that milk for breakfast, no-fruit-chunks-yogurt for lunch, mac and cheese WITHOUT sneaky, cheesy vegetables for dinner, television 24/7 with no interruptions for physical activity, sleep at "will" (and that means HER will) must all be UNIVERSAL truths in toddlerhood! Which means it's not my fault that the kid never eats a green food. It's normal that she is still very much a vegetarian (in the sense that she doesn't eat meat, not that she likes veggies...just to be clear, cause she does not like veggies even a wee little bit.) It means that the near constant cries of "SHOW!" with finger pointing frantically at the tv are to be expected. Whew! What a relief!

See, it's not like I'm dumb. I know all the cliches about raising a toddler. The whining, the crying, the picky-eating, the never-ending mess everywhere she puts her dainty little foot, the obsession with Elmo, the tantrums, MY GOD the tantrums. Of course I know all about that. And have seen it all with my own eyes. I have nieces and nephews.

But the other cliche, the one that goes something like, "well, my child will..." is also true. It's not like it's intentional. I didn't set out to think that I would be a perfect parent with a perfect child. I never had that assumption. But when it's you, dealing with your child who won't eat anything but yogurt, cheerios, and maybe a banana, it's different. Trust me. It suddenly seems that somehow you have completely failed at this parenting gig. Who trusted me with this little creature? Are they expecting me to teach her to brush her teeth twice a day? Are they kidding? How the hell do I do that? She clamps her teeth down on the toothbrush like she's aiming to snap it's neck off when I stick it in her mouth! Do they really think I can make this child take a nap? Yeah, you try. Good freakin' luck.

In reality, this kid does just about anything she wants and I play referee. I'm not proud of that. It feels like I should be doing more "parenting." But I don't know what else parenting a toddler means! It's not like I can reason with her. It's not like she really cares a whole lot what I want her to eat, or to play with, or when I think she should sleep, or what healthy habits I think she should get into. And for the record, lest you think I'm living with a demon child, she is a great girl! She listens very well and she rarely throws a major melt-down tantrum. But, believe me, that is totally up to her and her doing; it has nothing to do with my parenting. When she wants to do something, she's doing it. If I tell her "no" she looks at me, giggles, and does it anyway. And yes, I know she's testing my boundaries, learning the limits of what she can get away with, seeing if I will be consistant, and all that crap. When you're in the middle of it, it feels a lot more like this parenting thing is going to be a much harder job than anyone told you. Where was that "Toddler Contract" when I applied for this job? I'm just so glad it's not just me!

"Now I know my C-E-Gs..."

Let me set the scene for you:

(Another) Rainy (no nap) Saturday afternoon.
Mommy is standing in the kitchen emptying the never empty dishwasher.
Miss G is in her highchair happily eating (and smearing) blueberry yogurt and cheerios.
We are singing together. Actually singing together. For realsies!

I sing "A-B-C-D-E-F-G..."
She sings something akin to "A-C-C-E-EEE-G!"

It. Is. Awesome.



She looks at me and sings "suuuuuuuhnnn-eeeee" to the tune of the Sesame Street theme song, hoping I'll sing along. She sings "la la la la" to Elmo's World in the backseat of the car when she thinks no one is listening. And let's not forget "rorororororo" and "eyeyeyeyeyeye". They come out every time she gets in the swing. She's starting to get some of the words to The Itsy Bitsy Spider and we do the motions together. But not only is she getting some of the words, or....um, letters, she is getting the tone right. It is really beginning to sound like singing. And it is, by far, my favorite new thing. I could listen to her sing all day.




How did we go from that little, squirmy, crying, didn't-even-know-she-had-fingers BABY to this bouncing, climbing, running, spoon-using, singing LITTLE GIRL?? It just continues to blow my mind. Every single day.

Was I Bored? Not Anymore...

Ok. I've been trying to come up with something witty and snarky to introduce you to this link. But, really. I think the following picture says it all.


Oh, and this one.


Or maybe this one.


Just go.

Lessons from a 19th Month Old

Here are a few tips and reminders, courtesy of G, on how to enjoy the summer. I haven't stopped learning from her since she was born. Thought I'd pass a few lessons on:

#1: Too chilly to get in the pool? No problem. Playing with your Nana is sure to make everyone's day.

(Ahem. Notice the Little People? I did not buy them.But I had both of these sets and they are on the Ebay list.)

#2: Bouncing is pure enjoyment. Inflatable bounce houses rock!

(This was G's first time in the bounce house, with her 3 older cousins bouncing all over her, and she loved it! She did NOT want to get out.)

#3: Run. Just run through the backyard. There is nothing better.

#4: Eating watermelon should require a change of clothes afterward. If you plan ahead a little bit, eating watermelon in your bathing suit is not a bad idea.



#5: Remember that watermelon is designed to make you smile...it's shaped like a smile, afterall!


Hope everyone is enjoying their summer as much as G!

Jam, Can, Thank You, Ma'am

My friend Kristina has been dubbed our local "Canning Queen" by those who know her. Last year she quite literally delved head first into her own private canning frenzy, consumed with her lust to learn all the intricacies and secrets of canning. She documented it all on her blog, and we, her delighted friends, were privileged to be allowed to sample some of her canned yummies over the long winter months. You should be so lucky. (Ok, well, some of you are...)

This year, a seasoned (one season, but, man! what a season!) canner, Kristina graciously offered some of her less domesticated friends (me! over here! I consider myself fairly proficient in the kitchen but this experiement, partly inspired by Kristina, but without her help, turned out to be a rock solid nightmare) a lesson in the fine art of making and canning strawberry jam. It was so much fun we decided to make it a once monthly canning club. Next up, blueberry jam. Maybe some of that delicious peach salsa we tasted (and finished off) today. Oh, and possibly some apple butter!

Fresh from the farmer's market. Not as great as picking your own, but pretty damn close.

My strawberry girl, ready to can with the ladies. (Please respect the added cuteness factor of her strawberry shirt. The girl knows how to dress for an occasion.)

This is what was left after G finished "helping" hull the strawberries...we probably lost a whole jam jar's worth of berries in the process. This was nothing however, compared to the number of just-picked cherries she consumed later in the day.

Mashed Fruit and Hot Ladies.

Step by tiny-step instructing.

Just being cute.

Kristina keeping busy while the novices man the strawberry jam; she's workin' on cherries. The woman doesn't stop!

A little down-time coloring with the cutest girl there. G and "Aunt" Kate.

Team-work! Kate and Karli (and Karli's hot nails, freshly manicured, pre-jam making ;)

So ridiculously proud of my first jam jar.


Finished processing and...


One batch done. We did it all over again and made one more batch.

I now have 8 jars of strawberry jam in my basement and am already cleaning out room in the pantry for more. Before we left Kristina helped us make a little list of all the essential canning supplies and even told us where to find them. I must confess a mortal weakness for all gadgets kitchen related, even though I don't have room for all the cool crap stuff I already own. I am feeling a burning desire to purchase a big-ass canning pot, jar tongs, scale, little magnetic lid thingy, and a few dozen boxes of pectin.