Christmas goodness

Last night as Maggie was being put to bed, after putting out milk, cookies, and carrots for Santa and his reindeer (which she let out a giggle for), she tiredly and calmly went to bed and asked me if I thought Santa would wake her up with his "Ho ho ho" and also told me to shut her door because she didn't want Santa coming in. I thought maybe she'd wake up in the middle of the night, but nope, she's still sound asleep and so is daddy.

We did an advent calendar filled with a note for each day and each day had some sort of goody - coins for her piggy bank, Christmas stickers, or a piece of candy (gold coin, tootsie roll, chocolate-covered sunflower seeds). I kept it simple and used up things from around the house, no shopping required. She caught on about a week or two in and the last couple weeks she's been asking first thing in the morning to open her calendar. The calendar reminds me how fast our little girl is growing up and my pregnancy is even more of a reminder that these precious days with just our little Maggie are limited. She's the highlight of our lives and I love her girliness, we have a lot of fun together. I'm trying to get my mind ready for a boy and how that is all going to go down, but it's hard to visualize until it happens. I pray that despite the bumps, he will make his way into our family smoothly and that we all fall madly in love with him. I also pray that I do not disappear off the face of this earth, I think that would deeply depress me. I had a kind friend call me up a few days ago just to simply tell me that she would love to provide whatever help I need pre- or post- birth and for the rest of our lives for that matter! It was a refreshing call to recieve. I really appreciate when people go outside themselves and show their love in this way.

As I write this early Christmas morning, I am happy to say that this season was more fun for me in many ways. The gift giving was minimal but well thought out and creative; our daughter is almost 3 this Christmas and totally gets it (we didn't just build up Santa, I also put out a Mexican creche (nativity scene) which we think was given to us from a good friend from Mexico City and taught Maggie about baby Jesus :-); and I got to visit with many friends over the past couple weeks that I either haven't seen in a long time/ spent time with or they are from out of town.

Merry Christmas my family and friends!



Something with the camera screwed up my bump - it actually looks like a little torpedo poking out from my stomach!



Christmas Eve

Funny Happenings during the Holidays

This has been an exhausting but fun-filled time of year for us. Exhausting part isn't really due to the holidays (although the added activities that come with the holidays make things busier) but it's taken the past couple months to get Maggie's new bed dialed in as well as come up with a sleep plan that works for our family. It's been a process getting her to stay in her bed with having to use the bathroom or want in our bed, which we were not being very consistent about. But just this week things are working well and we've got a good little sleeper. Part of the fun of switching her room around for me has been finding deals. When I scored her colorful ladybug bedding for less than $10 from a consignment shop and then found matching ladybug sheets at Target, it made my day. I have to say that the coupons this season have been amazing. Online purchasing is amazing and so are family gift exchanges. It's the first time we've done it and I love that I just have to get one gift for my secret family member, cutting 9 gifts down to 1. It has helped keep things low-key and has put more focus back on enjoying other aspects of the giving season.

Upon finding out that a boy will be making his way into our family, we've started dissembling our last spare bedroom. The plus to this is we know what we need for his arrival, which isn't much, but it also means finiding more storage in our room and making everything fit. Our house seemed so big when we bought it pre-kids!

Maggie has become quite the goof and she can be sneaky too, like when I'm trying to hide her advent calendar with goodies in it and then fall asleep briefly...she sneaks it out, wakes me up playfully, and proceeds to shake it and find all the hidden candy. I'm also the type of person that doesn't really hold much back with the truth of things and with having kids, I think this is a fine way to go, but it can also get you in trouble (a.k.a. embarass you) sometimes. We've had a few of those moments lately after our quiet teaching moments. Things having to do with how babies are born, girl and boy parts, and babies nursing. The momentary shock is worth all the laughter that follows.

Maggie and I sent off her 1st letter to Santa this year and she and I brainstormed on what she wanted to ask for. She is still a little young in this department, but we came up with a good list. Maggie stated more than once that she is thankful for pigs around Thanksgiving which had us cracking up. She is infatuated with pigs, I wonder how long it will last. Her clothes preferences seem to change weekly. Anyways, pig toys made it onto the list and my sister is delivering in that area. We've got some of the other stuff covered and are keeping it simple.

The reveal

Had grand plans to do something like this on Thanksgiving day surrounded by family: 

Courtesy of the web


But then we had our ultrasound last Friday and it became hard not to peek at our secret envelope. I totally thought I could wait, based on the fact that I love surprises and waited with Maggie until birth, but it really got to me once I had the results at home. I should have given them to someone for safekeeping but instead I put them away in a closet and it drove.me.nuts!!! So, Michael and I sat down in Maggie's room the next afternoon after I'd taken a bath to warm up and relax. I was blown away upon seeing the written word and pictures...

BOY!

One of each. I hear boys are quite different to raise and I don't know what to expect until I see it, but I'm happy that I get to experience both. I'm mourning a little bit for Maggie and not having another girl as great as she is, but I can't complain. All of our love and focus has been on Maggie these past 3 years that it's hard sometimes to wrap your mind around a second little being coming into your family. It's just as exciting for parents the second time around but I know it can be overwhelming for the kids. I just pray that she adjusts to the changes and learns to love this little guy with all her heart. At least she won't have to share her clothes or girly toys!

Gratitude

"Every year at the end of November, we take time out of our lives and dedicate an entire day to being thankful for the people and things around us...Our society is inundated with constant wants and needs. The more we indulge those wants and needs, the more we desire, and it can become a vicious cycle. But taking a step back and being aware of the things in your life that you are truly thankful for brings peace to the chaos. Being thankful for the little things around you allows you to be present and live fully in the moment, instead of spending time wishing for things that are just out of reach and missing the joy right in front of your nose."

-Words from a yoga teacher I love and don't see as much as I'd like to

I've been seeing people blog daily with what they are grateful for this month. This yoga teacher said similarly that a fantastic exercise in the practice of gratitude is to keep a “gratitude journal.” At the end of each day, take a moment to write down five things that you are thankful for. You’ll begin to notice that even on days you would consider to be “bad” there are little things that make it worth getting out of bed. Becoming mindful and aware of the things you are grateful for will enrich even the simplest things in life and allow you to appreciate your surroundings more deeply.

Last year hubby and I hosted Thanksgiving and I did something like this with family that attended. I put out a nice journal with a page for each person to write what they were thankful for and now it is a treasure I keep from that day. I have been saying prayers and thinking about what I am grateful for a lot lately. With being pregnant, I'm more emotional and in touch with this side of myself I think, so doing this helps to relieve things on my mind. This Thanksgiving we are not hosting but it will not be any less special - new beginnings will keep it lively!

Fall Maggie Pics



  

Can you see a theme here? My favorite is this last picture of her holding a baby garter snake on our trip last weekend to the central coast. No fear and such concentration! Do we have a budding biologist? We went on such an amazing wildlife hike-we saw tons of baby snakes (garter and gopher), hawks, seabirds, seals, sea otter, and mice. A nice way to end the weekend.

Chilly

The past month has been sort of a blur. Things of note (and no pictures to share at this point but coming soon!):

-early belly jabs not the baby, it was organs moving around. Ick!
-feeling real baby kicks low and fluttery, fun! Can't feel on the outside yet.
-Maggie is really coming into her own. Such assertivness, opinions, new phrases like "I've got an idea dad". First morning today where I told her if she didn't get dressed (she only wants to wear pink or purple dresses which we don't have a infinite supply of OR shorts in 40 degree weather - mom says no!), I was taking her to daycare naked.
-threw up wonderful 5th anniversary dinner, boo...
-I dressed up for Halloween as a mouse but because of Charlotte's Web and Maggie's like for Tempelton, Maggie declared me a rat. Maggie was a cute giraffe.
-turning one year older next week, eek!
-1st ultrasound next week and gender will be revealed. Not sure whether I will be finding out, I've come up with some fun scenarios. Keep hearing about the new thing -gender reveal parties.
-so thankful for my family and friends. It really makes my life joyous, especially when you might lose your mind. The good things: kids at home, grandparents helping out, friends helping out in a pinch, friends lending me their pregnancy goods, being invited to wonderful places, and all the love shared!
-another thing I really love: organization and keeping things rolling. It really drives me.

Got to spend some time last weekend in Oakland on an annual girl's day, which before kids, was a trip to the east coast to knit our hearts out. We attended a talk by Clara Parkes here, a women well-known in the knitting world and someone we met a few years ago on those trips. Clara's talk was a delight, I really enjoyed it. She shared her own personal history and how life has led her to knitting. She was really funny, somewhat quirky, and fun to listen to. Even though I'm not knitting as much as I used to, it was a great day with good friends surrounded by beautiful colors of fiber. I also enjoyed a wonderful drink - ginger citrus spritzer, all fresh and yummy.

Another good story...we carved pumpkins for Halloween (first time with Maggie) and the same week visited Apple Hill-just sisters and cousins. Eden at the end of the day asked Maggie if she could have the pumpkins and Maggie gladly gave them up (to her mom's despair!). Light at the end of the tunnel-Eden is in LOVE with our pumpkins and has been filling them with all sorts of things found in nature. They weren't meant to stick around our place for more than a few days and I'm glad Eden is enjoying them so much. Love these girls.

Fun Facts

Things I don't want to forget (and another very early morning):

I started feeling the baby move in Oregon at 13-14 weeks. Much earlier this time and it's mostly a small movement/jab under my ribs on my left side. More noticable after I eat a meal. Can't feel it on the outside yet. Funny fact - I first felt Maggie move on my way home from work as we were headed to Oregon that day (same piece of heaven in Oregon) and Michael was able to feel it by the time we got home from that vacation. There's something about Oregon and baby kicks.

Christmas shopping for Maggie has begun (I scored some great deals) and her feet have grown. One foot is a size 7, the other is size 7.5 and they are narrow like our feet. She loves mary jane-style shoes and needed a new pair. The pair she chose were these :-) She's wanted to wear them daily.

Maggie enjoys when we tell her about being a big sister. She quickly named the new baby "Maggie Boy". She is also into pretend play. She has a baby named Lilac that cries if you take the bottle out of it's mouth. It's pretty realistic and something we've gotten used to. She told Michael last night that Lilac is "really getting big." She likes to carry babies around in a makeshift sling. I want to get her her own toddler sling so that we both can carry around a baby in that way come April. With her love of Charlotte's Web, she has the cutest songs memorized and swirls around with the baby or the tiny pig singing verses. She also idolizes the girl in the movie, Fern, who wears a ponytail. I haven't been able to keep her hair down much since she's seen that movie. She's always asking for a ponytail like Fern and mom, "make it high!"

I'm seeing signs of girlyness and nuturing in Maggie which is great and probably really normal for a little 2.5 year old. On the athletic side, my mom takes Maggie to gym once a week and she reported back this week that Maggie was a shining star and interested in learning new moves, like kartwheeling (which I had first showed her at home). Her new teacher was really motivated in working with Maggie and I think she's starting to really pick things up.

Cheers!

4 Months and More

Oregon 2011

No more bad morning sickness, I'm feeling mostly normal again. I've been quite relaxed about this pregnancy, it's definitely a different experience this time even though there are similarities.

Just returned from a lovely trip to the cattle country/mountains of southern Oregon. We experienced a piece of heaven and I'm so thankful it was right as I was feeling better.

Maggie is growing up so fast. She is in love with the 1972 Charlotte's Web and we love that she loves it, it's a good old-fashioned kid's movie that I remember watching when I was little. For the past few weeks, she has a little pig that she has carried around with her and calls "Baby Wilbur". She is starting to draw within the lines and make circles around things. She has a great memory for people. I'm constantly amazed at what she remembers and the cute things she says and repeats after hearing us talk. She is always finding things that match (colors, animals, pieces of clothing) and she has quite the opinion on what she prefers to wear.

Now that Maggie has potty trained, getting her to stay in her own bed at night has been interesting. Sometimes it goes fine, other times she wakes up a couple times a night to go to the bathroom but she is usually crying to let us know and I'm not sure if she is waking up all the way during those times. Sometimes she seems stuck in a dream-like state and is frustrated/scared. I hope this is a stage that will pass. Tonight is a good night, except I can't sleep. I'm up in the wee hours blogging and making a list. This is pregnancy brain for you.

More Oregon...



The biggest bonfire I've ever seen!






The cutest little cowboy we've ever seen!





Date lunch and rainy day drive on the open road



Heartwarming Stories

I would love to share a local homebirth story I recently read from a friend of a friend (and it's a dad's perspective) whose wife birthed her second child with the midwives we are using. The story is to the point, hilarious, and right on. But it's not my story to share so, instead, I will share this blog post from a famous knitter who I think used to be a midwife or doula. I love what she states about the woman and how the experience prepares her and others in her life for parenthood.

3 months

Heard the healthy heartbeat and it was around 140 beats per minute. Boy? Maggie tricked the midwives last time, she was low too (150 is mid-range, 160 is high end). My fertility chart in terms of determining gender is inconclusive. We were too good and excited at timing that cycle just right to give us good information on whether it's a boy or girl. I can't decide whether I want to know the gender early or not. Hubby does but I see a form of magic in waiting until birth. The baby is the size of a lime and I need to post a picture to document my tummy at 3 months.

My heart goes out to my friends that are experiencing hardships with pregnancy. For every positive outcome, I hear the opposite and it breaks my heart. I also know that these are teaching experiences and part of life. Not every experience is sunshine and lollipops (as my hubby says) but we make it through and hopefully come out stronger/wiser in the end. I feel like I'm coming out of a dark emotional/hormonal period that was tough to get through and life resumes in a wonderful way.

Happy early birthday to my dad of 59 years and congrats to my sister-in-law in buying her first home. Today is the 1st day of fall and such a good sign of things to come.

In need of good books

I love to read and my stack of yet-to-read books has left me uninspired. I was reading Raffi's biography which was an unexpected one to find (Raffi is a popular children's singer that generations have loved) but it was fizzling out toward the end and is still sitting on my nightstand. I enjoyed some of his insights, history about his Armenian background, and how he came to working with children, especially since he has no children of his own, but his lengthy commentary on environmentalism was a bit much. So then I picked up The Lace Reader but it's not hitting the spot. The Help is ready for pickup at the library and I've heard this is a good one. I saw the movie trailer and it looks like an inspiring yet sad story.

Recommendations for fall reading? Leave me a comment.

I spent time yesterday uncovering old knitting projects and organizing my craft area as part of re-organizing Maggie's room to make it more toddler-friendly and not just geared toward being a baby. I got my sewing repairs done and now I should tackle my gone-by-the-wayside craft projects before I start anything new.

Last of the Summer Days

Got the new haircut and love it. It's short and not a bob and was what I needed.

Pictures from July. I knew our family would be expanding this year so I wanted to capture some special moments of our family of 3. Our friend Bronwyn took them for us.

We're planning a second homebirth and this week marks our first appointment with our beloved midwives. I know they can't take away my nausea, but what they do provide is love and support and the extras, like doppler and listening to the baby.

At 12 weeks, one day I feel the same (sick with nausea), the next day I don't feel so bad (like today!). I hope this is a good sign that the end is near. I tried nausea medication but it seemed to work one day and not the next. So far with this pregnancy, I've felt pretty darn tired, have less patience for things on some days, and feel great adversions to food and much of the good stuff in life :-) It's been quite a teaching experience. Those teaching moments seem to come during the dark times.

With heading into the 2nd trimester, I'm looking forward to getting my diet/nutrition back on track and getting a little exercise. I think tonight hubby lucks out for once in a blue moon and dinner will be made!

C'est la vie

My mind goes to the negative these days with feeling cruddy and that is why there is a lack of blogging. It's a hard period for me to get through. I will document a few things that have stood out to me though about how weird my 2nd pregnancy has been so far:

1. For a meal, I am likely to sit and watch my family eat while a little bit nauseous, then slowly make my way to the kitchen to stare into the refrigerator and force myself to eat something. The other night it was watermelon for dinner. Because of the afternoon nap I took with Maggie that day, I stayed up way past my bedtime and watched cable TV and ate too many sour patch kids. This is when I do a little re-evaluation of my life and think "what have things come to?"

2. Usually, every year, even though I like where I live and grew up in the area so I have a particular fondness for it and have my family surrounding me, when I'm feeling down and driving around town, especially during the hottest month of the year, I see the dry grass and hide from the almost 100 degree temps and think I've got to move or go travel somewhere...FAST.

3. Just when I think I can eat a little more in my diet without my stomach making a fuss, I happily down a bag of popcorn at the theater on a far-and-few-between date with hubby and realize as it's almost gone that I haven't really offered him any. Oops! Or, the opposite - I get confident that I can eat spaghetti and a small salad and it quickly has me running to the bathroom. TMI?

I'm going for a new haircut today, that always cheers me up. Can I dye my hair too? Already got the pedicure.

Maggie is potty trained and wearing panties like a big girl. This presents a problem though but hopefully it's one that will resolve itself soon. She's still a crib girl/never trying to hop out like I hear with some kids. The fact that she uses the toilet now and wakes up at night to go has us running in to deal with it. So, changing her room around. Moving out baby furniture, mattress going on floor until we get the big girl bed, etc. I hoping for a smooth transition.

Family pics to come soon, taken over the 4th of July weekend. We got some goodies.

+ thoughts

Suprise if you haven't heard but I'm preggers with a kidney bean. Unfortuntately I'm experiencing a yucky first trimester where I'm nauseous all day, every day, can't eat normally, and doing what I need to do to get by with the help of others. Would love to fast forward a few weeks so that I hopefully come out of this and enjoy food again and have my energy back. I experienced the same yuckiness with Maggie but it seemed to start earlier this time and I must have blocked out how how horrible it felt to be nauseous all day because I remember a really nice pregnancy with her.

We got a nice camping trip in the weekend after I got the + test. I was just starting to gag at smells or things people said that were gross. After that, the "morning sickness" settled in and my weeks have been a blur. I was coerced to go on a second camping trip of the summer to Big Sur with my co-workers. I did it but not without feeling like crud sometimes. Driving adds to my stomach pains but the distractions of camping and doing fun things helped take my mind off things. It was our first time to Big Sur. I wish I'd seen more beach and the lighthouse but the weather was on the chillier side so just driving along the coast was fine. I was suprised to see how busy Big Sur was, it reminded me of Yosemite village. Big Sur is pretty, and don't quote me on this because of how I'm feeling, but it's not my favorite. We took the afternoon to visit Limekiln State Park, about 30 miles south, and that was really beautiful. Supposedly this little park is on the list to be shut down next year. 

Group campsite

Michael hiked up to this gorge on the Big Sur River with Maggie precariously balanced in the backpack. I caught a few glimpes of him on the way up and it scared the crap out of me. She was a trooper.

Our crazy curly haired girl





Finishing up the smore a co-worker made for her - she was in heaven

I simply cannot wait to feel good again and by then, I know I will be really starting to show. I don't think I ever lost a little bit of tummy after Maggie and as of last week, I couldn't hold the tummy in any longer. What's with that? I know things look different to everyone on the outside, but on the inside I'm still coming to grips with being pregnant even though we were trying! It's a big committment and with working, feeling sick, taking care of a toddler and our home, it's no joke.

To all my friends out there who have done this multiple times, my hat is off to you. We very well may be a happy family of four.

Other things to note:

-threw together fun date in a matter of hours and saw Sugarland last week!

-Maggie is almost potty trained!

Cheers :-)

Snapdragon

I am a Snapdragon What Flower Are You?

This is What Kind Of Flower You Are: Snapdragon

"Mischief is your middle name, but your first is friend. You are quite the prankster that loves to make other people laugh."

Take the quiz

Caught on Camera

Parents In Rocklin Boycott Park Playground Over Potential Dangers

This was a goofy interview that happened a few weeks ago. My mom came to visit me at work with Maggie and we suddenly had the local news in our face as we entered the new playground down the street. What I said to the newscaster was kind of skewed in the story. I barely got a chance to check out the new playground before being asked what I thought of it and I think they capitalized on the fact that I was normal looking and had a 2-year old by my side.

How do I see it? Every parent should try their best to watch their kid at all times, no matter where you are, even if you think you are in a safe atmosphere. This park was built really tall and a local daycare had complained that it was too big/dangerous for little kids. I get it, because it was, and parents want a safe place for their kids to play and have fun, but the bigger kids were having a blast on the play structure. Just goes to show that you can't please everyone. Especially with the bad economy in California and very little funds for cities, towns, and counties to improve areas like this for the public, I think we need to be thankful for what they are able to do. A lot goes into making these things happen, much more than most people think (finding funds for parks, getting bids for a quality playground, permits, etc.) I see it behind the scenes at work - there is a lot involved.

I probably won't take Maggie back to this playground for awhile (not in my neighborhood and yes, it's scary high for a 2-year old). As the story suggests (minus the drama!), if the city is able to, hopefully they can add a few other areas for little ones in the future. Folsom did it and it seems to be working out well.

Good things

The garden is starting to produce. I've been sharing a veggi "bag" at work and it comes from one of my co-worker's very productive garden. I get a bag every two weeks and tomatoes are finally here-woo hoo. I can't wait to make a batch of gazpacho. My tomatoes aren't quite ready yet so I'm thinking the upside to that is I'll probably have tomatoes late into fall.

Last week I helped a friend take care of the animals on her property and I turned it into a couple fun outings for Maggie (and cousin Eden). There were goats next door and Maggie told me she saw a pony with them. I scanned in the sunlight and didn't see a pony. Two days later we're back and I see what she most likely saw...a llama! Maggie harvested eggs from the chicken coop and scattered some food around for them, picked berries, and we took dips in the pool. Maggie graduated from her first swim class as a frog where she learned some good water skills including how to "scoop". She now has a little donut she swims around in. "Mommy, I swimming!" Total happiness on her face.

Our 4th of July holiday was a blast. This holiday might just be my favorite. It felt long and full of good things. I often think about how crazy life can get and how fun that craziness makes our life in the end. I don't like feeling overloaded but a certain amount of on-the-go-ness makes life so fun, especially when we're surrounded by good family and friends. We saw two firework shows, bought new outfits and had family photos taken, ate classic summer food, rode a train along the river with Maggie falling asleep in my arms (that never happens and I loved it), and we swam our hearts out. After an exhausting 2 days, we were going to lay low on the 4th but instead went to a party with friends and it was the perfect end to the weekend. What a beautiful plantation-style/southern home in the middle of Sac! with wrap around porches and outdoor fans, beer on tap, badmitton, and ice cream cones while watching a crazy firework display. I kind of felt like we were add-ins in a movie with soft lighting, like in a Nicholas Sparks film.

It must be the hot weather coming late but I am really liking the heat this year. Usually I wilt, get tired, lazy, etc. but somehow I'm holding up :-) Last week I was told by softball buddies that they thought I was under 30. "25? 26? 27?" Ha! That made me laugh. Good to know I don't look as old as I sometimes feel.

Today is my best bud's 32nd birthday in Hawaii! Happy birthday Patria! Beautiful model-esque pics of Pat Mark!

Two's setting in

About a month ago, I started noticing subtle changes in Maggie that were showing that the her two's we've heard about were starting to show their colors. I'm not going to say terrible two's because that just sounds negative. She is still our sweet Maggie but with a little more umph! Reading a friend's blog today and I could relate. Parenthood is bittersweet and it is hard to be completely in the moment when there is so much going on around us but I also try to enjoy and appreciate these special moments when they happen. One thing that had me laughing the other day is the potty training process. We had a friend over so my attention was divided and we were practicing underwear/no underwear-time in the house. Next thing I know I find Maggie using the toilet but a little too late. She had the wiping down but then told me "there is poop everwhere!" and then proceeded to show me where it was. Good times.

We've been on the go a lot. We're in the middle of swim lessons as it is that time of year that we hear of very tragic events in the water involving children and I just don't want Maggie to go down that road. She also showed a huge exhuberance for water this spring so I knew it was time. Lessons have been great. The pool looks so inviting but dad has been having fun in the pool.

My goal this summer is to get out and go camping a lot and spend time outside with family and friends. So far, we're doing good. We are having friends over for meals, riding our bikes, walking to the park, and enjoying our yard and garden.

Beach crafting

During our May vacation, I played around with my jewelry-making stash with my friend Erin, who took up making jewelry a few years prior when we were hanging at her beachhouse. I collect things here and there for my stash but don't make much in the end :-) Erin quickly surpassed me in this area and has a huge stash and lots of homemade jewelry. She can really pump out some cool pieces fast.

Anyways, this time around, I stuck with it and made myself a matching necklace and earrings from beads in my stash with a little piecing help from Erin. I also made a stretchy necklace for Maggie and she helped by yielding some of the tools. Her necklace is on a lightweight stretchy string and I used jewelry glue to secure the knot in place. This is a fun and easy craft to do with kids. There was no rhyme or reason to my bead selection. I just wanted Maggie's necklace to be fun with bright colors and chunky beads. 

Now for more crafting this summer. It feels like it is flying by.

Sneaky

A good binky story...

We eliminated the binky but I thought it would be good transition-wise to keep it around for sleeping only. This has worked well for one of Maggie's playmates. I was strict about this though and explained to Maggie that the binky could only be used while sleeping and that it would remain in the crib when she wasn't. The process of eliminating the binky in this way at age 26 months has worked incredibly well.

Maggie was proud to show everyone that she was a big girl and that she could only have the binky when it was naptime or night time and she has become increasingly less dependent on it since we started this. It's really great to watch (especially when she was so (annoyingly) attached to it before :-)). It's a love/hate thing for parents.

Maggie has been learning how to open and shut doors, including her own and we've found that sometimes when she shuts her door she really does want to be in there alone for whatever reason. Maggie has been well aware that the binky resides just within her reach if she sticks her skinny little arms through the slats of her crib.

One morning, Michael heard her door shut and then silence. Too much silence in our house (with a toddler) is bad. So, he goes to check on her and finds Maggie reclining in the rocking chair all relaxed, reading Jamberry, with the binky in her mouth. The second Michael opens the door and sees this, she looks like she's been caught red-handed and quickly takes the binky out of her mouth like nothing was going on and hides it behind her back.

While this had happened with me previously, I hadn't mentioned it to Michael. So when this happened, he ran in to tell me what he's just seen and it had us cracking up! What can you do but smile and laugh at your sneaky but precious 2-year old? I love this stuff.

Ramble

Taking a moment during Maggie's nap to clear my mind that is currently hopped up on too much caffeine. I should have gone decaf this morning when pulling through the drive through to get a latte :-) I knew ordering a medium (2 shots) was not going to go well (because I'm usually a one cup of tea kind of girl) but it sounded so good in the moment! Coffee bought at 10:30 am. It's nearing 4 pm and just now coming off my buzz after a late lunch.

So glad to have storytime back in our lives on Tuesdays. Summer session at the library has started and I'm thankful for it to be added back into our weekly routine. I've had a few nice chats with moms while there over the past year, but generally Maggie and I keep to ourselves...maybe because it's the library and it's a place to practice being quiet :-) I like this storytime though because it's a mixed bag in terms of the types of families that show up. And wow, take a few months off and lots of moms have baby bumps!

Since Maggie became mobile around 1 and eager to get out of the house after ditching the morning nap, I make a point to get out mid-morning to do something just for Maggie on my days home during the week (and to be efficient it's combined with an errand or two). Going to storytime, for example, has been good for so many reasons - change of pace from home play/me getting caught up in chores, providing consistency in terms of what she is learning at daycare (preschool-type lessons), socializing with other toddlers, learning about the library and how to check out books, creating mommy and me time, and playing at the park if the weather is nice and we've got the time. I've found so much enjoyment in watching Maggie develop her understanding about all of this as time flies by. I've really seen all the little things I've shown her and taught her (not excluding everyone else helping in this area) build upon itself day by day, month by month. So far, this has been one of the greatest joys of being a parent because I've seen the time we've spent with her and the time she has spent with others developing in this way pay off in creating a well-rounded cheerful and loving little lady. The cherry on top is recieving compliments from acquaintances that spend time with Maggie and tell me what a joy she is to be around. Keep 'em coming!

Funny moment that our family cannot forget - misplacing Howie, oh my! I knew this day would come, it was just a matter of when. I hadn't put much thought into it happening besides a fleeting thought about how I should possibly find another Howie just to be safe and stash it away for the day that it did. Well, a few months ago, my mom, who watches Maggie one day a week, was going about her day with Maggie and by naptime Howie was missing. My mom was stalling with Maggie as long as she could but she let us know he was missing by the afternoon because we all knew the shiz was going to hit the fan at some point that night if he wasn't found! While my mom retraced her steps, I took action by recalling where we'd gotten him from (mom had bought him for Maggie at Barnes and Noble) and then Michael ran out to find and buy Howie #2. Turns out all his brothers were waiting to find a home and Michael returned with Howie #2 so fresh and clean. In the meantime, I cook up a friendly story for Maggie about how she had left Howie at nana's house that day (I had an inkling that he really was there) and that daddy went to go get him before bedtime. We offer super clean #2 to her hoping she doesn't notice the subtle differences. She doesn't seem to mind or know and quickly tucks him under her arm. We laugh over the evening's events and get the call from my mom that Howie #1 is at her house. So, now we have a permanent backup. #2 quickly became as loved as #1. Maggie does not know she's got Howie twins in the house but now we're set if this ever happens again :-)

Cheers!

Botanicals

More Table Mountain goodness. I spent a day in April with Maggie and friends exploring this wonderful botanical paradise outside Sacramento.

Onto summer. My mom helped me get my summer vegetables in (squash, gourds, cucumber, basil, cherry tomatoes, and regular tomatoes (mix of common and heirloom varieties)). Still need to plant the pole beans where the lettuce is growing. We also planted pretty shrubs in the front yard in a lonely area that faces the street and has been plant-less since we moved in.

If you haven't discovered hot lips sage yet, buy it! It's amazing! Also loving our native deer grass, English lavender, roses, and native California fushia. Planting purple needlegrass soon, found at our local CNPS native plant nursery run by volunteers at a Day on the Farm (Soil Born Farm-sponsored). Had forgotten purple needlegrass is our state grass. It's a native bunchgrass that is near and dear to botanists and occurs in our regional grasslands.

Ok plants, grow, grow, grow...

Picture time

Easter has come and gone, our spring vacation is over, birthdays have passed, and summer softball begins soon. We just travelled for a week through central California visiting family, the beach, and friends. Maggie was our little travelling buddy and she impressed us. We logged 1,200 miles and she barely made a fuss. I think it's a combination of her getting used to road trips, growing up/enjoying her surroundings more, and having a DVD handy with her favorite shows if the ride got too long.

The Tour of California is filling our nights. Maggie and I watched the racers whiz through old Folsom during Stage 3 in the drizzly rain, Maggie yelling "Go, go, go..." to anyone and everyone that was listening. We're enjoying the cute things Maggie says and does every day. She's repeating things more than ever (Michael...watch it :-) and copying everyone around her, especially kids. She wants to: cook, find the cat, draw, jump, go to storytime, hide, swim, go to the store and push her own cart (thank you Trader Joe's for having kid-sized carts), eat her vitamins, drink milk before bed in the sippy, hold my hand in the car, wear Hello Kitty bandaids, crack her own hard-boiled eggs with an "I did it!" at the end of the 1/2 hour process :-), be naked, go to the park, see her closest buddies, and the list goes on. This is the stuff I want to remember for myself and for her sake. We've had great success in elimating the binky to strictly sleeping - woo hoo! I was waiting for this day to arrive. With milestones like that, my best success is in letting go and then letting it happen more naturally to wear there is less fighting, some ah-hah! moments, and a happy family in the end.

 Life is good.

Maggie eyeing Eden's Easter loot



Look what I found Dad! (the real prize inside was jelly beans-thanks Uncle Dave!)



Table Mountain day trip - Maggie's first time holding lizard



Feeding giraffe at the zoo - Maggie got cold feet at last minute

Such a fun experience and great day at the zoo with 4 moms and 6 kids

Daddy and daughter in Cayucos

Tidepooling and playing with beach rocks - who me?



Visiting Amber and family, SLO college friend