A Lesson in Gentleness

The other night, after LBB was sound asleep and Dear Sweet Hubby was relaxing, I took a much needed Mommy's night out and went to (drumroll please...):

The dollar store.

Oh, yeah, this Mommy knows how to rock her quiet time. ;)

And at the dollar store, I bought tons of goodies for LBB's preschool and 3 snowflakes for our patio. (See, I spoiled myself, haha.) AND...I bought "Mexican Jumping Beans".

I thought there was an off chance that LBB might enjoy them. I thought right. Since introducing him to his little "caterpillars" (we make sure we avoid the term "bean" lest he thinks it is a nommy) he has shown a gentleness that is heart melting and adorable. He quietly whispers "shhhh" when he is telling them goodnight. He softly picks them up and places on the carpet, which he observes as soon as he lays on his belly and props himself up with his arms.

He makes sure the kitties stay away from them. He puts them softly back in their new home (a snack container), and hands them back to me to put up on the counter. It is really the sweetest thing, and a lesson that he was greatly in need of due to his extreme toddler tendencies. :) Who would've figured that for a dollar, I could find a sweet little treat for LBB to learn what it means to be gentle? Not me, that's for sure.

OH, and if you want to read up a bit on these cool little things, check out this article! I'm going to do some research so I can make sure these little guys live for a while.

Funny Puppy

A few weeks ago, I was clipping coupons when I saw this cute little ad for DentaStix dog treats. Knowing how much LBB loves puppies, I cut out the picture and handed it to him.

And he carried it around here and there for a day or two.

Then I asked him..."Where should we hang this picture?"

And he led me straight to the corner where the kitty bowls are, laughed, and pointed at the wall. Ah. I love it...my LBB is nearly 18 months old and he already has a witty sense of humor. :)

Ironically, this little corner is right next to our front door, so whenever we go anywhere, we pass right by the funny puppy. And now, my LBB has the most adorable little routine when we are leaving:

He leans in. Quietly whispers tot-speak to the puppy. Laughs a bit. Waves bye-bye. And the best part?

Leans in and gives the puppy a sweet little goodbye smooch. :)

This Mommy's going to have to laminate that puppy picture before it gets too soggy. :)

Funny Tales From ToddlerVille

• We have a regular squirrel visitor. He's quite the annoying little thing, but he's cute, and I love squirrels, so we don't mind him too much. Let me correct that...I don't mind him too much. LBB on the other hand, does. Today when Mr. Squirrel stopped by for a visit, he was greeted by Cat 1 cackling at him and LBB yelling at him. With his Elmo phone in his hand. LBB kept holding out his phone and hollering (with the window open of course) "BOB! BOB!" Apparently Mr. Squirrel's first name is Bob and Elmo was trying to get a hold of him.


• This morning I told LBB it was time to get dressed. As I was going through his clothes looking for a specific outfit, LBB walks up to me, yellow fleece Spongebob PJ's in hand, and gives it to me. Apparently, LBB was ok getting out of his Cars PJ's, as long as it meant putting his yellow Spongebob jammies on instead. Needless to say, LBB is not wearing his Spongebob jammies around today. (Instead he is wearing a shirt that says "Big Trouble. Little Shirt." Yeah, it fits.)


• LBB chased Cat 1 through the whole house today, walking behind her, pointing, and yelling "Meah! Meah!" I don't know if he was trying to make a meow sound or what his goal was, but the poor cat was freaked out like crazy.


• Yesterday for lunch, LBB and I made a pizza. We bought one of those premade pizza crusts, spread some yummy Trader Joe's pizza sauce on top (which he got a kick out of!), and then he sprinkled the mozzarella cheese on top. When it was time to put the pizza in the oven, LBB screamed his head off. Needless to say, LBB didn't eat a bite.


• And last but definitely not least...if you want to see the definition of mess, give a toddler boy an Oreo Cakester and let him have at it. :)

Ah. Toddlerhood. It rocks. :)

Kicking the Winter Blues in the Butt

You know when you get to a certain part of winter, and you're bored. And all you want to do is sleep. And eat. And veg around with a good book? Well, I've hit that. However, when a toddler gets to that point, it's quite the opposite. :) LBB's been a tad more stubborn than his normal stubborn self (which, coincidentally, seemed impossible to me.) He always wants to go outside. Go for walks. And just has a general level of crankiness and stubborness that is sometimes a little difficult to contend with.

So, I said to myself:

"Self, stop being a lazy Mommy. You may want to cuddle up on the couch and wait for these winter blues to go away, but you can't. Suck it up."

And you know, there is a lot of resources out there for fun activities to do with little tots during the winter blues. So, today we implemented a few of them. :)

For LBB's lunch, I decided I'd try to outmanuever that finicky eater and trick him into eating something that had a little more nutritional value than a fruit strip. And here's what I came up with:

Yes, those are cut up pieces of fruit strips in one of the cups. :) But...he did eat about 1/2 of his puppy sandwich, so I'm not going to complain too much. (The cheerios, on the other hand, turned into small bombs that he launched at the cat.)

Then it was onto playing with his sensory bin. This seriously couldn't be an easier to put together...a trip to the store for a dish pan. Throw in some rice, dried beans, and a little glitter if you want (I avoided the glitter...Dear Sweet Hubby gets home from his business trip today and I'm sure the last thing he wants to see is his son covered in glitter. HA!) I picked up a 6 pack of cheap plastic cups, and LBB was entertained for at least 15 minutes. (Hey, it may not sound like a long time, but for a boy who generally has an attention span of 2 minutes with his toys, it seemed like an eternity.)

Cat #2 was also pretty enthralled with the concept of an "indoor sandbox" (I'm hoping she doesn't mistake it for a litter box) and even after she left, LBB would kindly bring a few beans to her. He shares so well it amazes me. (And this is a toy that requires FULL supervision for a tot like LBB...he'll put anything in his mouth. The other day he found piece of carpet fiber and tried to eat it. Ew.)

I got LBB down for his nap and read THIS wonderful article about how when you are raising a spirited child (feisty, impulsive, strong-willed, etc etc etc. In other words, LBB. If you read the second paragraph, she is not only describing her daughter, but my little guy as well) you can try all the "suggested" ways to try to get that little one to conform...but God's plan is a little different than that. Obviously you need to figure out what discipline works, but you also need to realize that the generaly personality isn't going to change. (Does that make sense? I don't want you all to think I'm ok with letting my kid run rampant!)

So, as I listened to my LBB yell in his room because I was making him take a nap in his bed, I chuckled to myself while I read the article. I had decided that I was going to see if letting him cry it out would put a stop to the bedtime issues we've been having the past few nights. And then, quiet. :) Sweet, sweet quiet that is so much more meaningful when you have a rambunctious little one running around. I went to go check on him (he bumped his head bigtime earlier today and I wanted to make sure he was ok), and as I go to open the door, I realize...

There's something blocking the door.

Let me rephrase that: There's SOMEONE blocking the door. :)

In the midst of his tantrum, LBB fell asleep in front of his door. I was finally able to get the door open just enough to fit my hand in, moved his legs, open the door a bit more, and transferred him to his bed. He is now soundly sleeping...in his bed, as most people would like, covered up with his blankie and snuggling with his bear.

Ah. Spirited. I think that hits the nail on the head. :)

A Woeful Tale of Fish :)

When you find out that you are going to have child, your world changes immediately, and in a very good way. You know that there isn't anything you wouldn't do for your child...

...and then you fast forward to a year and a half later, when your little one shows a keen interest in something. And what do you do? Why, you nurture that interest in every way, shape and form, of course.

LBB loves fish. I believe I've mentioned that before...but just in case I haven't, let me elaborate. It's not a passing fad. Not a ho-hum kind of love. He flat out adores fish. He loves watching them. Talking to them. Showing them to people. So, of course, as soon as we moved into our apartment, we got him a fish.

LBB's fish was named Allis. A cute little goldfish that was a wonderful first pet. :) She seemed slightly lonely (meaning, she was getting a tad...boring and lethargic), so we went and got her a friend. Days after getting her the friend, she took a trip to fishie heaven, and her friend, Shelby, continued about his merry way. Until he decided to take a trip to fishie heaven as well. Sigh.

So, along came Google. One of those big eyed goldfish (the actual name is Black Moor Goldfish, if I'm not mistaken) who looked extremely goofy but are always fun to watch. LBB loved Google. Even learned how to say his name...about a week before Google decided it was time for him to go to fishie heaven as well.

This was pretty recently, and LBB still likes to walk around the house says Goo-ga. We quickly went and got TWO new fish, convinced that the reason behind our fish issue was lack of companionship. Into our home we welcomed Thing 1 and Thing 2 (LBB's room is going to be Dr. Seuss themed...it fit.) They were such fun fish. Active. Playful. Very good friends. And LBB adored them. He was learning how to feed them and loved to show them to Daddy every day that he came home. Then Thing 1 got this funky red around his nose and a white cottony growth.

After a little research, I not only came away with what was wrong with Thing 1, but that our whole tank set-up was completely wrong. You know how you always see goldfish in a bowl? Well, here we were keeping them in a nice little 1.5 gallon tank with a heater, but no filter, and thinking it was ok. Yep. It's not.

Apparently, goldfish are known to be some of the most fickle fish to keep. Not to mention dirtiest. So, without going into the details...it turns out we were essentialy "killing" our poor little fish.

So, we went and got a bigger tank with the whole setup, took the advice of the pet store clerk, and put Thing 1 and Thing 2 in their new tank immediately.

The pet store clerk was wrong.

They seemed to love their new home. LBB spent the rest of the evening watching them swim around and explore their new digs. He didn't want to go to bed, but, I put him to sleep, we said goodnight to Thing 1 and Thing 2, and LBB fell asleep watching his fish swim around. Later I checked on LBB and the fish, and all seemed fine. And then when Dear Sweet Hubby got home, I went to go show him how happy the fish were...and they were both dead. :(

I cried all night. Who would've thought that two little fish could affect a grown woman so much? Well, when they're your little guy's fish that he adored, it doesn't come as a surprise. :)

Now...to get back to what I was saying at the very beginning, I could easily say "No more fish!" Drop the tank off at goodwill. Go about our merry way sans fish. But no. As a mommy you know that that won't do. :) You do whatever you can for your little ones. So once again, I spent the afternoon rinsing rocks, cleaning plants, washing decorations, and scrubbing the tank. After LBB wakes up, I'll be putting water in and treating it. Installing a new filter cartridge. All that fun fish tank stuff.

But this time, we're doing it RIGHT. We are waiting 3 to 4 days to let the tank cycle through. Bringing the water to the pet store to have it tested.

And NOT getting anymore goldfish!

Something different this time. LBB will love it...he's been pointing to the fish tank, so I know he is wanting his fish back. Soon enough, little man. Soon enough. :)

SNOW!!!

When I was still pregnant with LBB, Dear Sweet Hubby read the book "Snow" almost every night. LBB loved it then...he'd immediately start bouncing around in there. :)

So, of course, when we found out we were to get lots of snow this weekend, Dear Sweet Hubby pulled out the book for bedtime story last night. :) And when LBB awoke this morning, he got to see big, fluffy, beautiful flakes floating in the air and white all over the ground. Needless to say, LBB has spent much of his morning thus far in front of the patio window watching the snow.

And, even more adorable, he spent a bit of his watching time with Cat 2 while reading his "Snow" book.

How sweet is that?

LBB Cracks Me Up!

Everyday with LBB is sprinkled with something new. :) As he gets older, he is showing more and more of his personality...and I LOVE IT! He's hilarious!

The other day we went to Wendy's with his PaPa, GiGi, and Auntie, and LBB happily snacked on a littile bit of Frosty after his dessert...until...he got a brain freeze. :) He got a cute little expression on his face and quickly rested his forehead on the table. I can imagine what was going through his mind..."Oh. My. Gosh. This feels terrible. Argghhh. My brain is freezing!" And after LBB was done with dinner and dessert, he rested his little bitty chin on the table and stared at us with a look that said "I'm all done. Why aren't you people?"

LBB also loves to sneak up on people...except there is one problem. He is not quiet. At all. As he is crawling to the person, all you hear is peals of giggles...and then he'll stand up and laugh when you see him. :) What a goof.

And this evening, my sweet and funny LBB was playing with my cell phone while I picked up the computer desk, and all of a sudden I hear him chattering. I glanced over and didn't think anything of my "innocent" LBB sitting in the middle of the living room. And then, I hear Dear Sweet Hubby's voice through the cell phone! LBB called his Daddy to say hi while Dear Sweet Hubby drove home. :) Too cute!!!!

OK. I'm done gushing...for now. :) Have a great night!

I am 9 months old!

Hi everyone, LBB here!

My mommy said I could write this time because I am 9 months old now, and I am a very big boy. :) Plus, I've had an exciting few days, so I can't wait to share!

First of all, I got a new fish! My first fish Allis went to Fishie Heaven a few months ago. Then my other fish Shelby decided to go see Allis. :( But now, I have a new fish...his name is Google. He is a black goldfish with really funny eyes. He doesn't seem very smart, and smells a little, but I like to watch him and giggle at Google. He spends most of the time swimming along the top of the water...I think his eyes make him floaty. We got some new decorations for his tank too. I picked out a bright orange plant, white rocks, and a cool submarine. I think he likes his home, but my Mommy and Daddy have to clean it up almost every day because he is so messy.

I've been crawling around everywhere, which I'm sure my mommy told you, but I love to crawl! It's my favorite thing to do. I especially love to crawl to places that my Mommy says are no-no's. It's funny watching her say "no." I think she makes a funny face and her voice is much more stern than normal. I giggle at her. Each night when I get a bath, my Mommy and Daddy get me undressed in my bedroom for my bath, and I crawl all the way to the bathroom. I love taking baths now. I don't have to use the baby tub, so I get a whole tub to myself to splash around in. My kitty cat sometimes comes and watches while I take a bath. She is funny.

The other day my Mommy and Daddy took me to the grocery store, and I met a girl there. She was a few years older, but that's ok. She started talking to me, and I held her hand. My Mommy and Daddy say I'm a flirt, but I don't know what that is.

I had to go to the doctor yesterday. I got my height and weight taken, and they said I am 30" tall and weigh 23 pounds 12 ounces. My doctor says I am at the top of my class. I like my doctor, but he keeps telling Mommy that she needs to let me cry myself to sleep. I don't like when he says that. He also said that I can start switching from baby food to real food...that is awesome. I have 4 teeth, with 3 more coming in right now, so I don't like the mushy food anymore. Last night my Mommy and Daddy gave me some Chinese. I had rice and mushrooms, and it was really good. Today for lunch, I had noodles and some sweet potato puffs. I also had some banana baby food, but that is ok, because I really like bananas. When I went to the mall with my Mommy, GiGi, and Auntie, I had some ice cream, raspberry lemonade, soft pretzel, and rice. That was a good day.

We went to the bookstore after my doctor appointment and I got a book about fall. It is fun to look at. It is one that has different textures. I like the squirrel fur the best. We had a squirrel come visit me. He hung on our patio screen. Mommy shooed him off with a book. He really liked seeing me. I liked seeing him too. He was really nifty.

Well, I gotta go for now. Talk to you soon!

Friday Nights

When I was in high school, Friday nights consisted of hanging out with my friends and flirting with boys (hey, I'm just being honest.)

In the early days of our marriage, Dear Sweet Hubby and I spent Friday nights out shopping and whatnot (and unfortunately, are still paying the price. Dumb credit cards.)

And now, as a mom and married gal, Friday nights have taken a decidely different turn.

Last night, Dear Sweet Hubby, LBB, and I went for a nice, relaxing evening walk. And I came back to....

Orzo pasta. All. Over. The. Living Room.

Yes, that's right. Apparently, Cat #2 decided that she would pull the garbage bag OUT of the cupboard, get stuck in the handle, freak out, and tear around the living room, dispelling it's dinnery contents everywhere.

I mean everywhere. Under the heater (we have radiant heat). ON the wall (yes, you read that right). Under the sofa, and somehow, under LBB's playthings. I moved the sofa to find our dimwitted Cat #2 hiding with the torn up bag stuck around her neck. (See, I used "dimwitted" in the most realistic sense.)

And the fun didn't end after I moved all the furniture and vacuumed the floor very thoroughly (thank goodness it wasn't a saucy meal.) After I got everything put where it was meant to be sans Orzo pasta, I went and found cat #2 and began to pick the Orzo that was stuck in her fur out. And...12 hours later, I am STILL finding pieces of Orzo in her thick fur.

Sigh. All I can do is chuckle.

LBB here...

...and my mommy is letting me write to say that my goldfish Allis is lonely.

So, we are going to get her a new friend. Another fishie just like her. We already have some names in mind...and I think I know which one I am going to choose, but we aren't going to share until we know for sure.

She seems a little sad right now because she is all by herself.

I'm excited to get Allis a friend. I really like to watch her swim, and I think it will be even better to watch two fishies swim.

I'M A SUCKER.

But, at the same time, I'm not.

Why, you may ask? Well, it's simple. We had LBB's two month checkup yesterday, and his pediatrician said that since he is doing so well sleeping at night, that it is time to start teaching him to soothe himself to sleep.

We didn't start this yesterday since poor LBB had his shots and was a little cranky and just needed some cuddles. But first thing this morning, after he had a 6 am bottle, I waited until his eyes got just to the droopy stage, and promptly placed him in his crib. And then...

I laid there.

For five. long. minutes.

It really felt like an eternity listening to him cry himself to sleep. But, Mister Doctor said to do it. And to let him cry. Golly. There is nothing worse than hearing LBB cry and doing nothing about it. I felt like the worst mother of the year. But then...he was quiet. A few more whimpers followed. But then he was quiet a little more. Followed by a few more whimpers. And then...much to my surprise....HE FELL ASLEEP!!!! And slept for three more hours. I can't wait to tell Dear Sweet Hubby when he gets home from work.

But...my success was short lived. He woke up, he got a bath and a bottle, and he started getting droopy eyes again. So, as hard as it was to put my cuddly LBB to bed, I did it. And he cried. And cried. And eventually screamed so much that the softie in me gave in. So, I picked him up and he fell alseep in my arms. However, he is asleep right now in his playpen, so it's not a totally bad thing, right?

Baby steps. That's all this is. :)

I forgot to mention...this morning while LBB soothed himself to sleep by crying, Cat 2 showed complete concern and laid down on the little table thing by his crib. She watched him and eventually even put a paw through the slats like "It's ok, baby, I'm here with you."

Hard to believe it's the same cat who has tried to eat thumb tacks before.

FAVORITE COFFEE SHOP AND A VERY SCARY CRIB

Remember how I mentioned my favorite coffee shop in my last post? I was thinking about how when we lived in Old Town, the nearest one was 2 hours away. And today, as we drove around New Town, we passed three within a 20 mile radius. Awesomeness.

I need the caffeine fix regularly...especially since LBB has a thing against sleeping in his crib. While Dear Sweet Hubby was finishing up the moving stuff, I stayed with my parents. During that time, what had been just an inconsequential habit of cuddling in the morning in bed with mommy has turned into a constant need of sleeping in bed with mommy and daddy. Thus, we are desperately trying to break this habit. (Well, not desperately, but we are trying.) Here's the problem though...LBB likes to be held, cuddled, snug, and warm. And when he is in the crib and being put to sleep on his back with no blankie, as all doctors recommend, he is not a happy little camper. Not at all.

But, I am proud to say, that at this moment, LBB has been sleeping semi-soundly in his crib for the past 10 minutes. Maybe tonight he'll stay in bed all night?

Also at this moment, Cat 2 is attempting circus acts in the laptop bag. She is standing on her hind legs, glancing at the open pocket, and diving into said pocket. Literally diving in. I'm not exagerrating here. :)

What a crazy life.

Deals and some crazy cats.

I love a good deal. I love clipping coupons and remembering to use them. I made a little coupon organizer box, and I just LOVE when I have coupons in there that I can use. Some of my favorite money saving things right now:

*$10 off an annual membership to a local attraction that Dear Sweet Hubby, LBB, and I love to go to. We only have to go twice to make up the cost of the membership...and it is something that I know we will get tons of use out of!

*Buy one get one free at my favorite coffee shop. Mmmmmm. Pure bliss. I think Dear Sweet Hubby and I might stop by tonight since he is finally home after all this moving stuff!

*And when buying diapers today, a certain store had diapers on sale, and if you bought three packs, you got a $5 gift card. Top that off with the $2 off coupon I had...yay! I got 110 diapers for $22.00 and a gift card to go along with it. Nice.

Now to Cat 1 and Cat 2. They hate car rides, which is really no surprise since they are cats and all. However, moving is never a treat. Cat 1, our oldest, is a nervous nelly and hates any type of change. And she really hates car rides. Cat 2 is Miss Tough Pants. So, as a result, she tries to tear apart anything that is making her angry. Which, coincidentally, was her cat carrier.

And poor Dear Sweet Hubby was fortunate to drive 5 1/2 hours with Cat 1 and Cat 2. :)

Poor guy.