It's starts early

I have a more meaningful post in the works about my experience the last 3 months, but it still needs some tweaking (a.k.a. I got a little long winded). Instead, I want to share a couple of funny tidbits from ShankRabbit during this time.

#1. This was one of his Facebook status messages:
There's so much of me that I see in her. Yet she thinks she can get away with using my tricks. I don't think so, sweetcheeks. Now go eat your toast or I'll throw you in the snow.

#2. An excerpt from an IM chat we were having. I really don't know how to set this up other than saying she's my kid - through and through.
-----
ShankRabbit:
I sit down with Peanut this morning in front of the open fridge
and I pull out the juice pitcher and the milk.
"Peanut... which one would you like... milk or juice?"
....
....
(.... = baby decisions)
"ju"
Okay...
As i'm putting the milk back, "no no no no..... mill"
um... okay... "you want milk?"
"OKAY!"
as i'm putting the juice back, "no no no no.... ju"
Grrr
"so you want juice?.. not milk? just juice?"
....
"ju. OKAY!"
So I'm putting the milk back and she smiles at me... "no no no .... mill"
So i said to her, "look... keep this up and I'm mixing them... then who will be smiling? huh? daddy will, that's who."
She looks at me with her frowny face... "no. mill."
and she let me put the juice back and pour her milk.
The end

Dust is a good thing, right?

It comes as no surprise to me that my last post was almost a month ago. The last month has been crazy, lovely, stressful, fun, emotionally trying, tiresome...you know, the usual.

Happenings in our household:

• Lots and lots of sickness for everyone
• Work. Work. And more work.
• Trying to handle the ever-changing mood of Peanut - teeth, major routine change, and missing daddy and mommy create chaos of the unfun variety.
• Doubting decisions one minute, then fulling embracing them the next.
  

I'm hoping to have some Halloween photos posted soon, but the child is having a dance party right now. I never pass up a dance party.

Fall

There is just something so distracting about fall. Once the air starts getting cooler, I think "oh crap winter is almost here!" and I try to spend as much time outside as I can. This chick was not meant for cold weather (but I suck it up because I don't like the creepy-crawlies you guys got in the south. Give me wind chills and snow any day over a bug bigger than a quarter).

And that is why I haven't been around much. Well, that and booking our lives full of weddings, birthdays, garage sales and other commitments. August and September were a blur.

* * * * *
I will be starting work soon.* I am equal parts excited and frantic right now. I feel like there's so much to do before then. Same crazy feeling I get with the onset of fall, except with more sleepless nights and tension headaches.

In an effort to remain in one piece, I'm exercising my organizational skills. I have collected a bunch of slow cooker recipes** so we won't become regular customers of our local restaurants.
Hmm...that comment may lead one to think that I do all the cooking around here. I really don't - ShankRabbit takes on 95% of the cooking duties (voluntarily, mind you. He loves to do it). So really this recipe preparation is to ensure I don't have to cook after getting home from work. And that I can soak up as much Peanut time as I can before she heads to bed less than 2 hours later. Really, it's something I should have been doing eons ago.

* * * * *
My child is fun. Have I mentioned that before? Yes, there are wonderful moments with a baby and yadda yadda yadda...but now she's such a blast! She may have her dramatic moments of life not being fair (hey, if I can't play hopscotch with the DVDs, neither can you!)...but she's so much fun to be around. We have dance parties and color and cuddle and chase each other around the house. And when all is said and done and she's been tucked in for the night, not more than a couple hours goes by where I find I miss her.

How can you not miss this face?


Note: Give the child food and she'll let you do whatever to her hair.


This was taken at our garage sale last weekend. It's the beginning of October and we've already had to break out the winter coats. ShankRabbit, however, was running around in a cordoroy blazer and/or just his t-shirt. And I'm the one that's been getting sick. Grr...



She understands the concept of smiling for pictures. Here she is saying "cheese!"...or in her words "Theeeeeese!" As you can see she's starting to develop her mom's signature "hooknose" smile - hopefully she doesn't actually have a hooknose later in life. It's not pretty.

_____________________

* I just got word that A (the lady whose maternity leave I'm covering) went into labor early yesterday morning (30+ days early. Yikes!). I really should be starting work NOW, but since I can't leave the child at home, I have to wait until her official first day of daycare. Could you imagine the absolute brain-chaos I'd be experiencing if I had to start right now?

** I sufficiently scoured the CrockPot Lady's archives for yumminess and I could use a few more ideas. Have any recipes to share?

It's all about perspective

Our 15 month checkup for Peanut was rather uneventful. Yeah, she got a few shots at the end, but nothing her binky and a sticker couldn't soothe.
(and for those interested in her percentile range, it goes as follows - weight: 75%, height: 80%, head circumference: 95-97%...all still trending the same as it did when she was 2 months old. We gots a big kid!)

As I was sitting with the doctor discussing her current milestones, Peanut ran around the exam room, chatting away. She stopped me at one point and asked, "how many words does she know?! I think I've heard at least half a dozen!" I said, "I guess we've never really counted them before...uh [trying to think quickly] 15-20, maybe? Who knows." She responded with "wow, we expect about 3-5 words at this point. So, I don't think I need to tell you that she's doing really well. She's at a 2 year old level with her vocabulary."

Now, I am not saying this to rub it in anyone's face. I had to share this because...well, before this appointment we were a little concerned about her vocabulary. Not enough to send up red flags, but we thought she should be farther along. We had no idea where a 15 month old was supposed to "be" as we don't read those milestone charts you are bombarded with when you have a kid. We know if there was anything to be concerned about, the pediatrician would be quick to let us know.

Once this was brought to my attention, I started thinking about our daily interactions. And it hit me - she really does talk a lot (with and without purpose. She still babbles like the crazy cat lady on the Simpsons, but uses words all the time). A few examples:

While running around the house, "Da Daaaa! Weh are yoooou?"
When asked what she would like for lunch, "Hmmm...(goes to fridge and waits for you to open it up) - hot dog!"
Upon hearing a crying baby down the hall in the doctor's office: "Awww, baby..."
My personal favorite: When she wants up, she'll say "up!" When she wants down, she'll say, "up down!"

We have full conversations. She tells me what she wants and doesn't want. She understands what we tell her and will respond accordingly.

When you live it everyday, you just don't notice...

Random Wednesday

The past few weeks have been...life.
I don't know how else to describe them other that. There have been ups (how can you not enjoy a perfect sunny day?), there have been downs...but that's life. You know?

* * * * *
I woke up this morning to the wonderful sounds of Peanut who, upon seeing me round the corner, took out her binky just long enough to sign for "food." A whole banana, a piece of toast, and half a bowl of cereal (adult-size...as this was originally my breakfast) later, she was finally full. A mere 2 hours later, she wanted a snack. Hmm...can we say growth spurt?

* * * * *
I wrote up a post about someone I was not very happy with...but in the end, decided not to publish it (I'm certainly glad I got it out...even if no one will read it). Since I don't want to leave you wondering who is ruffling my feathers (it's not an easy feat), I will share this little bit with my readers...
My father's side of the family INVENTED manipulation and guilt trips. I can hear one comin' a mile away. So, if your intention is to have me emotionally check-out with you and doubt your words/actions, then by all means...send one my way. I'll point to center field and knock it out of the park every time.

* * * * *
I had very painful deja-vu this morning. I was just sitting on our couch, sipping my coffee, watching Sesame Street with Peanut when I shifted my position ever-so-slightly - resulting in throwing out my neck/back. Again. Same time of day, same situation, same debilitating pain.

* * * * *
To all the people getting ready for BlogHer: I wish everyone good weather and safe travels.

A word tour of our home

"Hi, welcome to our home! We're so glad you could join us. Here, let me take your coat.
If you would, please leave your shoes by the door. It's not that we're clean freaks - Peanut loves to eat soil and any interesting finds on the floor. Thanks.

Would you like a tour?

This is our living room. No, we do not decorate with Tupperware containers and measuring spoons. Our child just loves to play with those. Be mindful of where you sit - you don't want a kitchen utensil where the sun don't shine! Hahahaha...heh...wooo...moving on.

This would be our dining room. I know that most dining rooms have...oh, what do you call it...furniture in them. But we're minimalists. We like to think the absence of furniture in here will make our house seem bigger. In reality, it provides more floor space for Peanut to leave her toys. And for us to have dance parties. Who needs to eat?

And now we have made our way into the kitchen. We spend most of our time in this room, as you can see by the dishes and stuff on the counter.
Isn't our fridge "festive?" Peanut loves to decorate the fridge with handprints and slobber. Oh, and take note of which letters of the alphabet are on the fridge - the other 22 will be underfoot during this tour. Think of it like a scavenger hunt!

We can skip our rooms and the bathroom. The only thing of interest in any of those is our family photo - which can be found on the floor of the bathroom. Our daughter has quite the design sense, doesn't she?

Oh, you're leaving so soon? But you haven't seen our toy-riddled TV room yet! Well, if you must, you must...

Thanks for stopping by! "

Hair

For those that don't follow me on Twitter (if you don't, just do it already - I'll even provide the link to make it easy on you. Here ya go!), you may not have heard about Peanut's "nap hair."

Our child started off with a basic fuzzhead. Observe:


It took shape as a beautiful, naturally swooped 'do:


We thought for sure her hair would be sparse for a long time, but out of nowhere her hair started to grow. A lot. We've now got a crazy little mane going...and you know what? I adore it! The best part is what we call her "nap hair."

Recipe for hair goodness: add one tablespoon of heatbox child to a heap of crazy sleep antics. Let bake for 2-3 hours. Voila!


I am not amused.

Now, at first I was calling her "Flock of Seagulls" girl. But, after reviewing their photos, like this one...


I realize I did not do my daughter's hair justice. It would be better described as the lovechild of Rick Astley and Lyle Lovett's hair. Am I wrong?






Or all three? ((shudder))

And what does mom do when Peanut wants to drape a scarf on her head? Tie it on and take pictures, of course!




"Matchmaker, Matchmaker, make me a match..."

NOT Oreo crumbs

We were in the midst of making dinner (in last night's case, warming up leftovers) and Peanut was HUNGRY. Since it was going to take all of 30 seconds to warm up her dinner, we didn't give her any "appetizers" to tide her over. She whined a bit and then wandered off into the living room (not unusual).

When she came back in the kitchen, she seemed a little too calm. That's when I noticed something on her chin...a tiny spec of dirt.

what the...?

Peanut ate dirt. From a houseplant.

While I give her props for being resourceful ("Hey, I'm hungry. Let's see what grub I can scrounge up"), that's just...eeeeew.

---
ShankRabbit and I discussed the "weird" stuff we used to eat as kids.

He ate sand and dirt, but never paste (he was afraid it would glue his insides together). I preferred ants (for a very brief moment in time), the yellow flowers off clover plants, and violets.

So, I'm curious...did you ever eat anything out of the ordinary?

Music for kids

Peanut and I stopped by the library yesterday. No, not to crash story time...I was looking for some CDs.

My children's songs repertoire is vast, but that requires remembering them. Right now, I have been singing Peanut the extent of an EP: Itsy Bitsy Spider; If All The Raindrops...; ABCs; If You're Happy and You Know It. I know there are others floating around in my brain, I just need a little help remembering them. Enter: children's songs CDs.

I've spent a lot of time with children in my life - cousins, foster siblings, babysitting, etc. I am very aware that these CDs can be hit or miss. Fortunately, our local library has quite the selection of said CDs. I was able to find everything from Veggie Tales to Radiohead for babies (providing the link so you'd know I'm not making this up).

I selected a Disney Collection CD (I have listened to this one before. Very good), Toddler Tunes (not sure how I feel about this one yet), and a Sunday school songs CD.*

I'll let you know how it goes. In the meantime, if you have any suggestions I'd really appreciate it (NO Raffi, please).

__________________

* - ShankRabbit has asked me a couple times to sing little kid Christian songs to Peanut. One problem: I never learned them. I can hum through "Jesus Loves Me" and maybe sing a few lines of "Arky Arky"...but that's where it ends. So, I am hoping this CD is decent enough to learn the songs.

I'm not cool enough for this club

Several months ago, I was perusing our local community newsletter and noticed an announcement for story time at the library (specifically for ages 6 months - 2 years old). Wanting to get out of the house and be more social, I thought this sounded like a great idea.
The first day of story time arrived and I made sure Peanut and I were out the door with ample time to spare. I went up to the children's section of the library and asked the librarian where the story time took place. She mentioned finding my name on a list. Uh...was I supposed to call ahead and reserve a spot? Yes.

When I returned home, I double-checked the announcement in the newsletter. Nowhere did it say to call ahead. I was baffled. This was a story time for a very specific age group on Monday mornings - you mean to tell me they have SO many people wanting to take part in this that they have to have reservations?!

Fast forward one month. The new newsletter arrives with the same information. I immediately picked up the phone and called the library.

Guess what? They didn't have any more spots. Completely full.

I hung up the phone, seriously ticked off. We just received the newsletter that day. This means for their list to fill up so quickly, the following had to happen:

1. People who have attended story time before get first priority
2. They were taking names down well before the newsletter published
3. It's a cover for a book-obsessed cult and I'm just not their type

The solution: Continue enjoying story time at home.

Anyone been in the same boat?

I am about to talk about my child and poo. If you'd rather not read about it, then skip over this post. Warning has been issued.


---


Peanut is super-stopped up (like, when changing her diaper I can actually see the poo ready to come out...it's just not moving). With the introduction of cow's milk a week or so ago, this is something to be expected...but not to this extent. I've gotten several ideas on what to do from my pediatrician's office (their staff is absolutely amazing, by the way), but it's heart-wrenching to see her shake and cry in pain when she tries to poo...with no end result.

It's no surprise that she is all out of sorts right now.

We have a list of things to try, so I'm not short of ideas (e.g. watering down her milk, eliminating all other dairy products, up the fiber, straight prune juice in addition to her usual pureed prune intake, pedialax...), I just want to know who else can sympathize. I could really use the "hey, I've been there" comments right now.

Fatherhood Friday: Do you know how to respond?

Peanut gets excited about food. If she's really hungry (which seems to be quite often...I swear we feed her!), she is quick to shove food in her mouth before chewing. Combine that with drinking water too fast and we've got one choking-prone kid. Nothing serious, mind you...just a simple "hack hack hack" and she's right as rain.

A couple weeks ago, after playing for a bit in the living room, it was time for lunch. I set Peanut in her high chair and placed several pieces of cheese in front of her. As usual, she started shoveling the food in her mouth as fast as she could. Though this time her coughs were actual gags. She spit the cheese from her mouth and tried one piece at a time. Same thing happened. I was concerned...how could one small piece of food make her gag like that? So, as I'm standing there trying to figure out what is going on it happens. She wasn't gagging...and wasn't breathing. Peanut was full on choking.

I'm not sure what the time lapse was between realizing what was happening and having her facedown on my arm in the infant Heimlich position, but I can safely assume it was mere seconds. I only had to hit her back 2-3 times before the obstruction fell out of her mouth. She started coughing and crying (sweet, sweet music to my ears!).



This, my friends, is the safety seal off a bottle of lotion (folded in half). She must have shoved it in her mouth while we were playing on the floor (not sure how it got into the living room, it should have been in the trash). My guess is that every time she tried to swallow a piece of cheese, this would get caught at the back of her throat...until it finally lodged itself in place. I would have never guessed that something so small and innocent looking could be so dangerous.

Afterward, I cradled Peanut in my arms on the kitchen floor in a state of mild shock and relief. Once comforted (both of us), it was understandable that she didn't want to eat lunch anymore. It took a good 10 minutes for her to go back to being her happy-go-lucky (very hungry) self.

Why did I tell you this story? Awareness. I was a lifeguard for several years and was trained to respond to all types of situations. I never once thought that I'd have to use any of this on my own child.

So, please...if you are not CPR/first aid certified, do it. You owe it to yourself and your family. In the meantime, read this article. It gives you the basics on what to do if you are ever put in a situation where the Heimlich or CPR is necessary.

Weekend review

We are back and made it through Saturday. Fortunately, Mother Nature was smiling on us and we got a 70+ degree day with lots of sunshine. For a Midwest April, this is amazing (Sunday was 45 and rainy, if that says anything)!

For my reference, a few important notes for next year:

1. Don't do favors
2. If your child touches your face with cake hands, make sure husband checks your face before pictures are taken (after reviewing our photos, it looks like I have chocolate snot. Greeeeat...I'm sure several other people got the same shot).
3. Make sure the time of the party doesn't interfere with nap time...especially with a sick child. She wasn't miserable - but not her usual smiling self.



I am not amused.

This little bundle of teething sickness decided that the day of her first birthday (Sunday) was the perfect time to start walking and feeding herself with a spoon. However, the continuation of doing either of these is on her OWN time...no amount of coaxing can get her to do it when you want her to (good thing we got the first steps on video).

* * * * *

Dance Party Time!
(Have no idea what I'm referring to?...read the bottom of this post)

Artist/Band: The Pointer Sisters
Song Title: Jump
Kid-friendly?: Yes

And here is a great scene of Hugh Grant dancing to this song (as the Prime Minister in the movie "Love Actually." If you haven't seen this movie. Go watch it right now. Seriously)

I'm back

I finally dusted off my keyboard today. If you didn't read in ShankRabbit's blog, I was struck Sunday night with a sudden, random bout of a stomach flu and it knocked me out hardcore. Thank goodness ShankRabbit is who he is and was able to deal with the crying pathetic whimpering sicky me. I'm a sad case when I'm sick.

Fun story about Saturday night...

We stayed at the in-laws on Saturday so we wouldn't have to travel too far for church the next day. Lots of fun to be had with the family.
Peanut decided at 12am - after 4 hours of sleep - she was done. I don't know if she was too hot (changed her jammies), still hungry (tried another bottle), not liking her surroundings (not home), or whathaveyou, but she was awake. Bouncing in her bed, smiling...which turned into whining...then crying. It took 2 1/2 hours, lots of cuddling and back-breaking rocking (on a twin size bed...no rocking chair in this room) before she finally passed out. ShankRabbit was in the other twin size bed trying to make it work with his adult size frame. Heh - I wish I could convey in words how funny this was, but you'll just have to take my word for it.
(Sorry, hun...I'm not laughing at you. Ok, maybe I am. But you'd laugh as well if you saw it from my perspective)
I am about to settle in for the night when I feel a little pinch on my leg. I pull back the covers and find an Asian ladybug - beetle - whatever those dang things are that infest every household.* Upon further inspection, I find another under my pillow. Since my bed was the closest to the window, I got to enjoy the bedmates. Fan-freakin-tastic.

I was done.

I packed up my pillow (sans bug) and a spare blanket and kissed ShankRabbit goodnight before retreating to the downstairs couch. It's not remotely close to any windows, so the chances of being attacked were slim. I settled in and finally a bit of sleep.

Fortunately, Saturday night's crib rave had no ill effect on Peanut the next day - thank goodness. She was just as charming as always...and that combined with family time, coffee and fantastic pastries made my Easter morning way better than anticipated.

And what are the morals to my story?
1. Bugs don't make good bedmates
2. Babies, no matter what they do, will always win with their cuteness. Every time.
3. Forget dogs - coffee is man's woman's best friend
________________

* - Harmonia axyridis, the Asian lady beetle. I contemplated posting a picture, but this blog is the only place I have left where I don't have to deal with them. So, click the link for photos and information.

Random #20

I've decided not to give my Random posts a name other than "Random #[insert current number here]"...because when the fancy strikes me, it's never on the day I schedule. I am assigning the arbitrary number of 20, because I don't want to go back and count what actual random day we are on. So, # 20 here we go:

* * * * *
I think I should start with a confession. I've had two beers. An amount that typically has no effect on me, but tonight (as I am writing this on Tuesday night. Don't worry, I'm not a morning boozer) I feel like I've consumed a whole bottle of wine...and a few shots. Let the par-tay begin!

* * * * *
This past winter, we had to move around our living room furniture to accommodate our Christmas tree. This meant the TV stand (with receiver, record player, CD player, and Wii) collected dust in a corner of our tiny bedroom...until now. Today I moved it back to the living room - but that meant I had to move the big couch, the little couch, and the ridiculously heavy coffee table (I think it was originally intended for a Wookie frat house). And since Peanut's birthday party is a mere 11 days away, I figured the crap collecting desk dining room table could go to the basement now. Though, I'm saving that big project for when ShankRabbit can help. Peanut doesn't know how to dial 911 just yet.

* * * * *
I made a kick-butt pork roast today.
*looks to see what part of the pig a pork roast comes from...after 5 minutes of searching, realizes it said "shoulder" on the packaging. Saddened I cannot make intended butt / rump joke*
And because I like you, here is the recipe (I would love to give credit where credit is due, but I can't remember where it came from):

Plagiarism Pork Roast
1 pork roast (4-5 pounds)
1 garlic clove, halved lengthwise
salt
pepper
1/4 c. maple syrup
1/4 c. brown sugar
1 Tbsp corn starch
1 Tbsp Dijon mustard (I used what I had on hand: Jack Daniels horseradish mustard)
*optional* about a 1/4 tsp of Sriracha...because we put it on practically everything in our house.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Rub roast with garlic and discard the clove halves when done. Sprinkle salt and pepper over roast. Put on rack and bake for 2 hours (this is where I got creative with a metal wok rack and a Pyrex baking dish. Worked great!). Mix rest of ingredients together and cover the roast with it. Bake for an additional 30-45 minutes or until the internal temperature reads 155 degrees. Let rest 10 minutes before slicing. Supposedly serves 6 (bahahaha...more like 3-4).

For feeling like I'm buzzin' I did an AMAZING job at recalling all the details of this recipe with no visual assistance.
I better re-read this tomorrow and make sure I didn't just give you a recipe for a shepherd's pie truffle. Or feet.


* * * * *
I use the oven a lot. You'd think with all the baking and cooking I do, I'd remember to preheat the darn thing - especially when the first direction is always "preheat the oven to..."
I forget every time.

* * * * *
ShankRabbit is at his desk, playing a computer game. I stretch and without missing a beat he says, "SOOOO BIG!"
Can you tell we have a kid?

* * * * *
Leave a comment on Code Monkey Daddy's blog to enter the "Song About You" contest. No purchase necessary.

* * * * *
Dance Party Time!
(Have no idea what I'm referring to?...read the bottom of this post)

Artist/Band: New Radicals
Song Title: You Get What You Give
Kid-friendly?: Sorta...there is one swear at the end of the song

Fatherhood Friday: Dads are the Best!

Visit Dad-Blogs to get more information on Fatherhood Friday. Great group of people - dads and moms alike!

I decided to take this Fatherhood Friday and focus on dads (wow! What an innovative concept, Isabella!).
Back story: I felt bad last night because I inadvertently made ShankRabbit feel "not good enough" in relation to parenting Peanut. It was certainly not my intent...and I want all the fathers, not just ShankRabbit, to know how important your role is in your child's life.

I don't want to bore you with my never-ending emotional babble (seriously, falling asleep at the keyboard is never recommended), so I'll just inundate you with photos...sound good? Here we go -

Why Dads Are The Best

No one can do nap time quite like a dad





And even when he's not sleeping, he's still great to fall asleep on





He doesn't just feed the child...he bonds, he connects



And he can multitask like a mo fo (dishes AND baby wearing)!









He is passionate about his interests and eager to share all he knows







even making sure the child has a "well-rounded" experience (e.g. cheesy cover band at State Fair)




He knows how to have fun (photo shoot, FTW!)












No matter the time or place, he'll get right in and play








even coordinate costumes on Halloween...'cause he's just that cool

Simply put...there is no one like you.

It's all my fault - the long version

I'm admitting that it's my fault now so please don't say, "well, you have no one to blame but yourself." I get it...so let me whine, OK?

Let's start with Thursday night. I put Peanut directly into her jammies after dinner. I normally don't do this, but I thought since she SOAKED her day clothes with water during dinner and it's so close to bedtime, why find a new outfit to wear?
(this will be important later...remember this)

I'm getting Peanut to sleep and I put a binky in her mouth - a freshly rinsed one. For anyone that has rinsed a binky and put it into a baby's mouth knows that it makes a squishy noise (from a little water getting trapped inside the nipple). Peanut starts to squirm and wake up from this noise. I frantically find a new binky and settle back into the rocking chair with her - now our typical 10-15 minute bedtime routine is now a half hour.

I go to bed way later than normal. I'll blame the siren song of the internet and ShankRabbit for that one.

That brings us to Friday...

At 6:45am I hear wailing from the baby's room. It is way to early for her to be awake...so I go in there thinking the job will only require a replaced binky and some back rubbing. I look in her crib to find a HUGE wet spot on her bed. Remember the early pajama time? Well, I forgot to change her diaper before her final bottle of the night - hence the overflow.

I call in ShankRabbit to change out her bedding and make a new bottle (hoping the soothing warmth of a bottle will lull her back to sleep). I realize this is fruitless when she starts smiling and barking at me. She's awake, dang it all! I'll just take a nap when she does...yeeeeah right.

We go upstairs to our TV room and cuddle on the futon to watch some kid shows. She's done with "cuddle time" around 9am. We do breakfast and then play a bit. 12pm rolls around and she's rubbing her eyes heavily. She has to eat lunch before her nap since she has a tendency to sleep right through meal time. We do lunch, get cleaned up, and it's time for a nap!

She's 3/4 of the way through her bottle and it dawns on me - I didn't change her diaper AGAIN! Seriously...where are my brain cells?! Instead of having a repeat of this morning, I decide to change her after the bottle. Oh great...she's sleeping. What do you think happens once I expose her girl parts to the cold room air - I'M AWAKE!

I try soothing her any way I can. I even leave her in her crib (praying that she'll lay her head down). For a while, everything is quiet...then I hear the binky tapping on the crib. Then her head. Then a cry. Then the binky, then her head...I think you can guess what's next.

I was upstairs listening to her over the monitor, so I decide to go save her before she knocks herself out. Once I hit the kitchen, I'm overwhelmed with the smell of crap. I sniff the garbage disposal, the garbage can...nothing. It's not until I give up searching and reach Peanut's room that I find the source.

I've heard of a sound barrier before, but never a smell barrier. I crossed the line between the bathroom and her room and about died. No wonder she wasn't trying to sleep...she had a diaper full!

I clean her up and try to get her to sleep. Giving up, we go back to playing. She so tired she's sitting up, with a blanket to her face, rocking back and forth. I try this nap thing again. Success! Now my turn, I lay down and I'm just about to enter the world of rainbows and flowers and sunshine when....WAAAAAAAAAAAH!

20 minutes. That's all she had to give.

Fast forward several hours and here we are. It's midnight and I'm still awake. Why, you ask? Because I like to torture myself, obviously.

Random Thursday #2

One of my blog friends, Liz, is going to look at a preschool for her daughter tonight. Here is my train of thought:

Wow...that's got to be one heck of an emotional roller coaster for her - her baby all grown up and stuff. Wait...Peanut is going to be a year old in a month! Holy crap! She's that much closer to preschool!

Here's the plan: I'm going to find that Peter Pan fellow, jump him for all his magical, Neverland fairy dust, and douse Peanut in it. She's never growing up, got it? GOT IT?!

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Has anyone else watched the show "Word World?" Little did I know the word drawings I used to make in grammar school would become a show.

Time to...(dum dum dum dum dum) BUILD A WORD!


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Are you having a so-so day right now? Need a little laugh? Stop by the Daddy Files blog and listen to his son laugh uncontrollably at bubbles. There just something about hearing a baby laugh that makes your day better.

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We're still feeling like poo warmed over in this household, but Peanut slept from about 9:30pm until 8:45am. I am a (somewhat) well-rested mama.

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Today's post was brought to you today by the letter H:

A body part by any other name...

Ah yes, another Fatherhood Friday. Today's topic: body part names

I'm not talking about your arms or feet...

I hope you know where I'm going with this.

In our household, the women-folk have a "hooha" and then some variation of ta-tas/boobies. I would like to clarify that our child will know the proper terminology for each part, but it won't be our 'go-to' word. This applies to any body part, really - how often do you call your collarbone a clavicle?

I know some mothers prefer not to use nicknames for these parts, going straight for the medical terms. They argue that if the child had to communicate something about these parts (lets say, to a doctor or police officer) they wouldn't understand.

I'm all for teaching your child the proper terminology, but the reason above is not a strong argument.

Children are pretty adamant about trying to make you understand what they are saying...so a little thing like a nickname for a part isn't going to stifle what they have to say - they'd probably just point and say "this thing!"

So, here's a question to you: What do you think? Do you have nicknames for these parts?

Random Friday #4

Welcome, Fatherhood Friday visitors! (Yes, I'm aware I'm not a dad...but the members of dad-blogs are very welcoming to the womenfolk, too).




Sorry about yesterday's text getting smaller and smaller. I have no idea what happened there - and I couldn't fix it, no matter how hard I tried.

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What in the world would require the "rinse only" cycle in the dishwasher? Couldn't you just hand wash/rinse it? I'm thoroughly confused (and, obviously, have never used this option). Has anyone out there used this?

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I use two spoons at mealtimes with Peanut. One for me to feed her; the other for her to play with (so she won't snatch the food one out of my hand...as she so frequently does). Recently, I had to upgrade to three spoons because she steals BOTH spoons - one for each hand. I'm all about being a kid and exploring and having fun, but when you use your spoons like this...



...and prevent me from getting food into your mouth, then we've got issues.

Consequently, I go through NINE spoons a day. Ugh. My hands are chapped from all of the spoon-washing I have to do each day.

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We have dance parties in our household. The who, what, when, where and why doesn't matter - if someone calls out "dance party!" you drop everything and dance. Typically, this has been during dinner prep time (when ShankRabbit is home). I can't explain how proud I am to see Peanut sitting on the floor laughing and bouncing to the beat of the music. *tear*

In honor of this, I will be posting a "dance party song of the day." I think I'm going to do this on Mondays and Wednesdays - because, let's face it, Mondays and Wednesdays tend to drag along (at least for me). If you have a song that you'd like to recommend for our dance parties, please post a comment or drop me an email. I love discovering new music.

Buuut...since I'm thinking about it, I start one off for the weekend -

Artist/Band: Motion City Soundtrack
Song Title: The Future Freaks Me Out
Kid-friendly?: There is one f-bomb in there, but I typically sing "Ah, flip it!" really loud over that part.