Project 365 - January 31st & Attn: Fredericton Drivers

Another combo post!! Aren't you lucky!!

So with my being on maternity leave for a year, very seldom did I have to drive during peak hours, so I didn't deal with other drivers in nearly the quantity I do while working. Remembering the joy of dealing with other drivers was an unexpected "perk" of my return to work today. As a direct result of my recent dealings with my fellow motorists, I have developed this far-from-exhaustive list of requests and suggestions for my friends behind their respective wheels.

• You see that little stick jutting out from the left side of your steering column? When you flick it up or down, lights on the front and back of your vehicle flash, indicating that you will be turning. I know that you've been advised of this little tidbit before, because, as a child, I heard my mother teach a similar lesson, using somewhat more colourful language.
  
  
• Right-of-way is your friend. It prevents accidents and keeps traffic flowing. Learn it, love it. By the way, just because you are turning left does not mean you have to wait for all of the other traffic at the four-way stop to clear out before going. Just sayin'.
  
  
• And while I appreciate your attempts to recreate your childhood dream of joining the circus as a tight-rope walker, I would appreciate it if you didn't straddle the white line into my lane while living out your imaginings. You use your lane; I'll use mine and we'll all get where we are going without my needing to hire the team from CSI to hunt you down through analysis of the paint transfer left behind after you side-swipe me in your ugly taupe car.
  
  
• If you can't park, you can't drive. I think this is reasonable. No matter how amazing you are at conducting your vehicle, if you can't manage to leave it somewhere in a sensible and respectful fashion, the fact that you can get it there is a moot point. I'm talking to you Mr.I-drive-a-GIANT-Hemi-powered-pickup-so-I-can-park-across-as-many-parking-spots-as-I-want. Those of us who had to drive around for approximately ten minutes in order to find a spot in the movie theatre parking lot salute you and your douchebaggery.
  
  
• Finally, you may be following too close if I can't see your headlights in my rearview mirror, but I can see you picking your nose, despite it being dark out.

Project 365 - January 30th & Catelogue of Izzy

This one needed its own post because there is a story that goes with it. As Isabel and I were driving to the grocery store, she piped up from the backseat:
Isabel: "I want to do elastics."
Me: "What honey?"
I: "I want to do elastics."
M: "I don't know what that means, hon."
I: "EEEEELASTICS! I want to do eeelastics. With the boy. The big boy."
M: (repeated what she said and looked in the rearview mirror to see her doing this...)

(I am completely boggled, so I repeat it again, at which time it dons on me what she is saying)
M: "WAIT! Are you saying you want to do GYMNASTICS?"
I: "Yeah!! Elastics! With the big boy!"
(I start laughing. The hand gesture is her trying to gesture "big" and by "big boy" she means the male coach who was instructing them at the school's field trip to gymnastics on Thursday.)

For the nervous nellies out there, I asked her to do the hand gesture again for me once we'd stopped in the parking lot...she is not riding around Fredericton without a seatbelt on.

Project 365 - January 28th & 29th

The kids and I turned a giant box into a playhouse. We then treated the playhouse like a clown car and jammed all three of us in it.

A weekend full of laundry :P

Project 365 - January 26th & 27th

The Wall - we bought a Super Yard in order to better contain Orin because is a wild and crazy baby.

My birthday card made by my girly *hearts*.

Tyger, tyger, burning bright....stick with mommy and I'll be alright.

Caveat - I read. A lot. This doesn't come as a surprise to anyone who knows me. Being a parent and a teacher, one of things I am reading the most about these days is parenting/teaching (there are many, many instances in both of my jobs where the two are indistinguishable from one another). Some of my most recent selections: Mayim Bialik's blog for TODAY, Raise Your Kids Without Raising Your Voice, Raising Cain: Protecting the Emotional Life of Boys, as well as many articles posted on PhD in Parenting and KellyMom.com. I also watched Babies yesterday, which was WONDERFUL. Some favourite reads from Isabel's babyhood are No Cry Sleep Solution, Happiest Baby on the Block and nearly anything by Dr. Sears.
When it comes to parenting, I've rarely said "I will never..." because that is often just an opportunity for failure. I've always had a vague idea of what I thought I wanted to do and be when it came to parenting though. Isabel was a handful because she is very sensitive and cautious and, in infancy, that was reflected in her fear of sleeping alone and her VERY strong desire to be held all the time. I had various people tell me that I was spoiling her and not doing her any favours. I was told that I needed to let her cry-it-out (the few times we tried it, when at my wits end, we ended up cleaning up vomit and - not fun for us and not fair to her, as far as I am concerned). I was told she'd NEVER sleep on her own, along with other such high quality advice.
It was at this time that I was incredibly thankful for my love of reading. I plowed through many books that came highly recommended by friend and foe alike. I held firmly to things that made sense, while still trying things that didn't necessarily. The thread through much of my reading that has resonated with me time and time again though is that babies follow their instinct and we, as a 21st century, "logical" society, find this inconvenient and frustrating. Oft times, this leads to extreme, sink-or-swim type measures, like crying it out.
How many courses have you taken where the teacher starts the course with the exam, giving you little assistance or insight into what is expected of you (and you are unable to deduce the expectations yourself)? What's more, you come back the next day and the exam is administered again. Next day? Same thing. And so on, until through trial and error, and exhaustion, you finally succeed. How much do you suppose you would learn from this experience? This is kind of how I see CIO (keeping in mind, I have tried it many times myself with both children with absolutely no success - possibly in part because I subscribe to Einstein's theory that "insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results"). I think that the frequency with which children who CIO in order to learn to fall asleep on their own regress supports my theory that there is little learning that happens with CIO.
When we learned to recognize and value the instinctive nature of our babies, life was easier for everyone. Babies don't know that they are being born into 21st century Canada. For all they know, they have entered 2nd century Asia in a forest infested with Saber-tooth Tigers. Would YOU sleep away from your tribe if there were a chance of being eaten by a tiger? Would YOU be okay with your tribe wandering away, leaving you alone in this same, potentially dangerous place (while they go make supper in the next hut, for instance)? Go camping in a place where there's a bear warning and let me know how you do ;) (I may use this analogy a little too regularly as, when an issue like this comes up in our house, I can just say the words "sabertooth tiger" and my husband knows what I mean).
In all seriousness though, babies have ONLY their instincts to go on. They have no reason or logic or life experience with which to dampen their fears. And until they can run at about 1 1/2 or 2 years old, they have no ability to act on their "fight or flight" instinct, which leaves them only one option: stick close to those who CAN do these things. What does this mean? Well, for us, it meant co-sleeping, baby-wearing, an untidy house, a little less time on our own (though, over the course of a lifetime, a drop in the bucket) and very happy and healthy babies who cried less and still learned to walk, talk and sleep on their own (or are at least starting, in the case of Orin).
The more I read and observe and experience with my own babies, the more I realise that a lot of the things that we were told we "had" to do in order to raise "well-adjusted" children, was mostly stuff people did to make their own lives easier. I am not saying this is wrong and I am a strong advocate for balance because without it, everyone will be unhappy, but I found a lot of success when we approached scenarios like sleeping and potty-training as teaching. This meant taking into account the readiness of the child, the lessons that needed to be taught in order for the skill to be mastered and that it would likely take time (just as we wouldn't expect a teenager to be able to perform the part of Hamlet after only three days, why would we expect a toddler to be able to use the potty in that amount of time?). Once again, my Education degree to the rescue ;)

Apologies to all my Literary-type friends who are offended by my butchering of Blake. Heh.

Project 365 - January 24th & 25th

Isabel and I were working in her workbook yesterday afternoon when we realised that we were going to be late for her dentist appointment if we didn't leave right that moment, so I woke Orin and away we went.

Isabel's class went on a field trip to a local gymnastics club's facilities where the kids were allowed to play on the equipment with instruction from a coach. They had oodles of fun and the coach was great with these little guys.

Project 365 - January 23rd

I spent about an hour today wracking my brain, the brains of my friends and the internet for some great songs from my childhood to put on the CDs that we are making as favours for Orin's birthday. This song is probably my all-time favourite; though Puff the Magic Dragon also holds a pretty special place in my heart. Both of those made the cut. Any other suggestions?

Project 365 - January 22nd

PHOTO JACKPOT!!!

Orin has discovered the joy of the cat door and throwing things down the stairs through it. As you may be able to tell, Slinky Dog was a recent victim of his attempts.

Dave donned the parka from 1976 in order to snowblow and shovel yesterday. This photo was taken well into the process. His expression hovers between a Mona Lisa smile and a dagger-filled stare.

Isabel helped with the shoveling, of course

Project 365 - January 21st

Hello, Winter! Finally decided to show up to the party, eh? Those are Dave's tracks from when he got home a few hours ago. We already had a few inches down, the roads were bad, the visibility was practically non-existence and any evidence that any of us had been out of the house at all today is slowly disappearing.

Project 365 - January 20th

The boy at bath time (Isabel has dance class Thursday evenings, so O gets the bath to himself).

Project 365 - January 18th & 19th

Getting my school stuff out of storage.

Orin trying out some toys at daycare during our visit today.

Project 365 - January 17th

I am prepping the paperwork for Orin to start daycare. So sad :(

Project 365 - January 16th

We went for a walk with our snazzy new wagon/sled.

BONUS PICTURE!!

The babes inside their new ride

Project 365 - January 15th

Dave makes himself into a human gate (keeping Orin in the play area) in order to "rest", using the box of toys as a pillow....desperate times call for desperate measures.

The Catalogue of Izzy - Issue #2

Isabel loves to sing. I was reminded of some of her hilarious rewrites of popular songs by this morning's gem:

"What do you want, Amy?" aka Adam Lambert's What do you want from me? (one of her teacher's names is Amy)

We have been having a hard time remembering some of the others, but the all-time favourite - it will likely go down in history as one of the things out of Isabel that has gotten the most laughs - is her rewrite of Lady Gaga's Bad Romance:
I want your lovin'
I just wanna be friends
You and me can make some badger pants
OooooOooooOoooOOO Oh Oh
Caught wearin' badger pants

She has no idea what a badger is, so I think she was just making stuff up, but I don't think I have laughed so hard as I did when we imagined "badger pants" (are these pants made for or made of badgers?).

I am sure there'll be another installment of "Isabel Sings", but this should amuse you for now.

Project 365 - January 14th

I introduced Isabel to Lego Indiana Jones yesterday and she went from not being able to control her guy at all to moving with purpose. She is pretty good for a 3-year old with about 1 hour of practice.

The Catalogue of Izzy - Issue #1

Orin's a baby.
When I was a baby, Gramma carried me.
When I'm big, I'll carry Gramma.

Project 365 - January 13th

"Alas, poor Yorick! I knew him, Horatio."

A 3-year old with a concept of personal space...who'd have thunk it?

A little anecdote from the catalogue that Isabel seems to be producing lately.

We were standing in line, waiting to sign her out of preschool on Tuesday. We were chatting with another mom and her daughter, my friend Shannon and her son and one of the teachers. The other little girl (M) has a crush on my friend's son (N). She asked her mom if she could hug him and her mom said that she could, after they'd signed out and she did. Then she approached Isabel for a hug. Izzy was talking to her teacher and standing kind of with her back to M. Isabel turned to speak to me and found herself about an inch from M, who had her arms splayed for a hug. Izzy jumped a little because she was surprised and immediately put her hands up and stepped back in order to reclaim her personal space. I didn't really expect this, mostly because no kids this age seem to have a concept yet of personal space. Isabel, for instance, spent the entire holiday climbing all over her grandpa, gramma and aunts, with absolutely no acknowledgment of their space, even after having been spoken to about it.
After Isabel assessed the situation, she approached M (who had kind of wandered back toward her mom) for a hug in a more respectful manner than I would have expected too (walked over, spread her arms and waited for M to come to her). Maybe she is getting the message very. very. slowly.

Project 365 - January 12th

Look at the snow fly beyond Toy Country.

Project 365 - January 11th

What? Do I have something on my head?

Slightly obsessive...

I am, that is. When I get it in my head that I love or want something, sometimes, I fixate so strongly on it that it becomes an obsession.

My newest one? My hair in my profile pic --------->

This was achieved by using a cone-shaped curling iron. I am obsessed with finding one now. Locally, they seem nearly impossible to find. I've found one on the internet: Le Angelique, but the reviews on it are only so-so and I know that because my hair is thick and heavy, I need an iron that will heat up quite hot.

Anyone else have any suggestions?

Truer words haven't been spoken...

"The longer I live, the more I realize the impact of attitude on life. Attitude, to me, is more important than facts. It is more important than the past, the education, the money, than circumstances, than failure, than successes, than what others think or say or do. It is more important than appearance, giftedness or skill. It will make or break a company...a church...a home. The remarkable thing is we have a choice everyday regarding the attitude we will embrace for that day. We cannot change our past...we cannot change the fact that people will act in a certain way. We cannot change the inevitable. The only thing we can do is play on the one string we have, and that is our attitude. I am convinced that life is 10% what happens to me and 90% of how I react to it. And so it is with you...we are in charge of our attitudes."

~ Charles R. Swindoll

Project 365 - January 10th

This potty business is serious.

How my Education degree helped my parenting

I have had a few experiences lately, with my kids changing moment to moment it seems, that have hit home the importance of readiness when it comes to milestones and expectations.
I first learned about readiness in university. I learned about it within the context of teaching students - are they ready for the skills and information you are imparting to them? It made a great deal of sense to me within that context, but it never really dawned on me that it would be integral to parenting my babies and, subsequently, toddlers and preschoolers.
Isabel gave us a primer in readiness right out of the starting gate. She was, and still is, very sensitive and cautious. This meant that, as an infant, she wanted to be attached to someone (and preferably me) 24/7. We used our baby carrier more than the crib in the first year because she was worn the better part of the day and we co-slept. She was just NOT READY to sleep on her own at that time. I could go into the gory details of how she told us this, but I will save that for another post about sleep-deprivation and colic.
Gradually, starting around 6-months, she began to nap on her own more regularly. She was still in our bed, but given her firm resistance to mobility, her falling out wasn't an issue for quite some time yet.
By 10-months old, she was sleeping through the night in her crib, which was still attached to our bed and had naps in her bassinet in her room. We moved the crib into her room not long after this point and she's been fine since, depsite all the warnings that she'd be sleeping our bed through high school if we allowed her to sleep with us as an infant (is that not the most ridiculous thing you've ever heard, but I can't tell you how many people told us we were "starting bad habits" in a 2-month old).
Fast forward to Orin, this guy was a cuddler. The NICU nurses worried that they'd created a cuddler, but he was like that from the beginning. He was happier in someone's arms or next to a warm body. I'd seen this before, so it didn't faze me. I wasn't allowed to co-sleep in the hospital, but, given that he slept half the night in the arms of a nurse, I figured that once I got him home, he may need it for the transition.
Night one, I tried to lay down with him to nurse, figuring I'd get some shut-eye while he got some food. He was having none of that! He hollered and thrashed until I sat up and cradled him. When he was finished eating, I didn't want him to cry and wake Isabel if I put him in his crib, so I laid us both down for a snuggle and a snooze. No Sir! More wailing and thrashing until I put him in his crib, at which point he turned his head to the side and fell asleep.
Apparently, some higher power either thought I needed the lesson in readiness again or thought I got it well enough the first time that they figured they could safely throw me a curve ball. Whatever the reason, I got a kid with a whole different readiness level when it came to sleep.
My most recent lesson in readiness came this morning. If you don't want to read about baby poop (nothing gory, I promise), stop reading now.
Orin has been struggling with solid food poop. He cries and makes a big fuss about the whole thing. More troubling and messy is the fact that he has only been able/willing to poop a little bit in his diaper. We then think he is finished and start changing him, only to have him finish pooping in an open diaper, on the change table or, and this is my favourite one, into a towel after bath. Not fun.
In thinking about this, I wondered if he had reached the point where he didn't like poop on him. My understanding is that this is what fuels lots of kids in potty-training. I also suspect that the increased bulk of his diapers is playing a part in his discomfort while pooping in them. Imagine the average kid's diaper after sleeping in it all night - Orin's is like that after only 2 hours. Whatever his motivation, I decided that the next time he made a big show of pooping, I'd plunk him on the potty to see if this made things a little easier.
This morning, the opportunity presented itself and I went for it. Lo and behold, the boy pooped on the potty. Now, there was still a little drama, but there are tears no matter what, so it may just be part and parcel to his getting used to a non-liquid diet. Most importantly, this was tidier and faster than the previous incidents. If he's ready, I am too - bring on poop potty training. If it is a fluke, that's ok too, though I should note that it only seems fair that he should poop train early, given that my understanding is it will take about four years to pee train him. *lol*

Project 365 - January 9th

Isabel and I enjoying hot chocolate after a bit of sliding.

Project 365 - January 8th

Playing around with the multiple image filter that was amid the old camera equipment my mom dropped off over the holidays.

The Boy is Turning 1!

And all of our friend and family are invited to celebrate with us. Just drop us a line to let us know you are coming.

Project 365 - January 7th

Taking a picture of me taking a picture.

BONUS PICTURE!!

Christmas packed up and gone for another year.

Project 365 - January 6th

My newest candy addiction is peanut M&M's. I have been eating them nearly every evening off and on since September. The largest bag you can get here is 525g (18.5oz). When we went to the U.S. most recently, I was puttering around the the food section, looking for Dave's Twinkies and came across this beauty! 42oz!! More than TWICE AS MUCH M&M's for the same price!!! I am in heaven.

It Takes a Village to Raise a Child

Since the family left and after reading this article (about an experience I would give me left arm to have), I have had a few opportunities to ponder the truth in that statement.
As I've grown up, my thoughts on the definition of family have evolved. As a result of my parents divorce, I had a much different family than many of my peers. The nice thing about this was that I had more people to "choose from" for lack of a better term. I was a very sensitive kid and needed to be treated gently and with support - tough love didn't do a damn thing, but develop within me a sense of mistrust. Having some really great friends in my mom's circle and an aunt and uncle and cousin who took us in as though we were their own whenever necessary really benefited me at the time and long term, helped me to feel okay surrounding myself with supportive, kind people who genuinely care about me, rather than a huge group of fluff friends and acquaintances. This is how my village helped me.
The village that took up residence in my own home over the last month benefited my children as well. They are still quite small, so the benefit was less specific, but their needs were better fulfilled than I could ever manage on my own. They had lots of playmates, reading companions, cuddle-givers and general supervisors. The house was kept more orderly than it has been in months, despite the fact that logic dictates more people equals more mess. Most significant though was the fact that the children saw different people - different personalities, different problem-solving styles, different mannerisms. They heard conversation and jokes and human interaction which, with a small household, isn't in as great a supply and isn't nearly as dynamic. They heard stories and learned their family's history. I could go on and on, but suffice to say that I am now a firm believer in this philosophy and look forward to the next insurgence of villagers.

Project 365 - January 5th

Doesn't appear as though my boy is ready for a one nap per day routine.

"the law that muzzles the press"

I found out about this when I puttered over to piratebay.org and then read more about it in European newspapers. Apparently, Hungarian law-makers passed some pretty harsh legislature just before Christmas that intends to regulate everything from TV and print news to blogs. It sounds like something straight out of the Soviet Union that they defended so voraciously against in the Cold War years, so it is a little surprising and upsetting. Therefore:


Add it to your site:

<a href="http://blackout4hungary.net/" title="we support the blackout 4 hungary.net campaign for a free internet"><img src="http://blackout4hungary.net/en/blackout-052x052.gif" alt="we support the blackout 4 hungary.net campaign for a free internet" /></a><br/>

Project 365 - January 4th

Looking like a GAP ad for hoodies

BONUS PHOTO!

Fun with Photobooth

Project 365 - January 3rd

The girly posing with her family in horses. The big brown horse is Daddy, the small one is Orin, the large unicorn is Mummy, the small one is Isabel, the large grey horse is grampa, the crazy haired zebra is gramma and the two smaller zebras are Courtney and Sarah (from L-R). What a kid!

Project 365 - January 2nd

We lowered the boy's mattress today.

Holiday Rundown

December was a wild ride with lots of events, guests, food, festivities and fun! If we play the numbers game, this is how the month would look:

• 11 human guests, the longest stay was 28 days and the shortest was 2 hours
  
• 6 furry guests, same visit lengths as their human counterparts
  
• A handful of "disagreements" between furry friends - only a couple resulted in flying fur
  
• 3 trips to the vet, one of which had us taking Ivy to a dignified and graceful exit from this world
  
• 2 days of heat pump installation by a really professional company - they were a pleasure to work with (Degree Technologies)
  
• 3 batches of shortbread
  
• 3 doctor appointments, all with SHINING reviews
  
• 2 performances by a little lady (dance class recital and preschool Christmas concert)
  
• 1 GoogleChat in which the soon-to-be new in laws were introduced
  
• 3 nights of Shadows Over Camelot (I was a successful traitor 2 of the 3 :D)
  
• SO MUCH good food, including a huge turkey dinner and a few nights of delectable cheese.....there was other finger food too, but mostly cheese ;)
  
• 3 delicious breakfasts
  
• 3 cans of Awesome
  
• Innumerable thoughtful gifts, including, but not limited to, my mother-in-law's helping with the housework in a huge way, my sister-in-law's leaving me her much-coveted circle scarf, my new MacBook Pro from my dear husband and my son's showing me just how healthy he is and convincing me he will be fine when I go back to work :)
  
• 7 inches of snow AFTER our green Christmas
  
• 1 3-year old who is absolutely smitten with her grandparents, aunts and uncle
  
• 3 indoor/outdoor cats who are likely just recovering from a serious bout of cabin fever
  
• 1 visit from Santa that injected a bit of magic into all of our lives
  
• Many nights of unbathed, over-tired children - all of which were worth it to be able to share the holiday with our families :)
  
• 3 sliding afternoons, followed closely by hot chocolate, of course
  
• 1 very handsome Christmas tree (good call, honey!)
  
• 1 batch of peanut butter balls
  
• 1 viewing of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (SO glad to have seen this - thanks mother-in-law!)
  
• Over 200 photographs of everything from Cricut crafts to cookies, from my first baby performing on a stage for the first time to my second baby standing on his own
  
• More than I can count craft projects from school, daycare and home
  
• 7 Christmas specials from my childhood that have now been introduced to my little girl
  
• 1 seriously fast bum scooter who kept us all on our toes (the boy can cover the length of the living room in about 10 seconds)
  
• 4 batches of chocolate chip cookies
  
• 38 Christmas cards sent to loved ones near and far
  
• 6 blog posts
  
• Dozens of repetitions of "the hippopotamus song".
  
• 1 tooth NEARLY cut through the gum (it has been bulging and causing symptoms for a few weeks now
  
• 7 people with sniffly noses or fevers thanks to some crappy little flu bugs and allergies
  
• 1 last minute road-trip to the US to pick up a few things
  
• Many hours spent alternating between a pink princess dress with high heels and nudity by our little furnace girl

That about covers it. If I think of anything else, I'll write an update :)

UPDATE (thanks to Dave)

• A tableful of candy
  
• An unknown number of illicitly acquired jellybeans
  
• Thousands of Santa sparkles in the house and yard
  
• 2 runs with the snowblower to clean out the driveway (and my friend still had to park practically on the road when she and her daughter came sliding)
  
• ~70lb of cat litter
  
• 11 silly hats, 6 racing penguins and, inevitably, a few missing cracker prizes

UPDATE (via Courtney in the comments)

• about 15 trips down the stairs to lug Lily the wanna be cat-ambassador out of the basement
  
• 25 Tassimo Coffee disks
  
• Lots. And lots. of Tea.

Project 365 - January 1st

Do you feel like you are experiencing deja vu? Those who've been with me from the beginning will remember that this is how this blog began, but with the chaos surrounding Orin's birth, I sort of fell off the wagon. Well, I've recommitted to the project because I am really interested in seeing what will come of it.
Here's today's:

Our furry guests all packed up to head home.

More from the Creative Mind of an Unemployed Educator

Not for long, admittedly...I am back to work on January 31st, but until then, you lucky folks get to endure the absurd things that my mind puts out there.
Last night, we watched the first two episodes in a British mini-series called Misfits , which is about a group of young offenders who acquire super powers as result of being caught in a very curious storm.
This morning, at breakfast, my father-in-law handed me the pancakes in such a fashion that demonstrated his amazing thumb strength (his hand was upside down in comparison to how most of us would have picked it up, resulting in his thumb being on the bottom of the plate and taking the better part of the weight). When I commented on this, making light of it, the others chimed in with comments about his "super strength." This fleshed out in my mind to a "superpower." Not only are his thumbs superstrong, but they also summon people from miles around. People are uncontrollably drawn in his direction as soon as he sticks out his thumb in order to hitchhike. Really a very useful superpower....for a hobo.