travel

I yike kiss mommy.

Saturday, January 31, 2015


Today...

...she cuddled up right next to me and told me that I was her favorite mommy. Phew. I was getting worried there for a second that her other mommy was her favorite. (Also...I don't know where this newfound love and need to smother...I mean...cuddle me came from, but oh boy, I'll take all of it!) 

...he gave me a sorta goofy look as I was carrying him on our way to the car after lunch. He then kissed my cheek, then kissed the other, and ended with a smack right on the lips. And then...get this...he goes, "I yike kiss mommy."

Mark this one down as a GOOD day :) 

The Great Pacifier Break-Up

Thursday, January 29, 2015


The great pacifier break-up.....question mark? 

We are on day four of being pacifier-free over here, and dare I say....it's going pretty great? 

Ever since his 18-month appointment, I've been worried that our pediatrician (who we actually totally love) would call the authorities on us because we were still letting him use his pacifier. Any day, I was sure a SWAT team would show up, carrying away our babies and confiscating all pacifiers on the premises. Then I remembered that they have food in their bellies, more toys and clothes than they need, and get about a billion kisses a day. Yeah, I'd say they're doing just fine. 

Anyway. We've been putting it off and putting it off because of one reason or another. Travel. The holidays. We enjoy our sleep. Etc. Etc. 

But, I decided that if he was fully capable of saying, "I want my pacifier" as clear as day, then chances were good that he was probably too old to be needing one. 

We thought about going the same route we did with S. With her, we decided to go the aviation route. After putting her down for a nap, sometime before her second birthday, I found myself blurting out, "No more pacifier! It's gone. It's somewhere on a plane in the sky." (This was after I had cut off the tops of her pacifiers...didn't work. She would either keep sucking on them or throw a huge monster fit.) She looked at me like I had lost my mind. Like, "What on EARTH is my pacifier doing on a plane, woman?!" Good question. Good question. 

So, naturally, for days S had been asking, "When is Pato's pacifier going to go on a plane?" Like the little mommy that she is. 

Then, on Monday, I decided it was time. Pato has been saying he's a big boy lately, so I thought the "big boy" angle was the ticket. 

All morning I kept telling him what a big boy he was. And I reminded him repeatedly that pacifiers were for babies. He kept saying, "Yup!" 

So when I went to put him down for his nap I said, "Okay, Pato! No more pacifiers! Because pacifiers are for babies, right?" "Yup!" 

Annnnnnd.....that was that. Hasn't asked for it since.

*****

Just you watch. He's going to magically learn how to find this entry, learn to read, and will decide to start screaming for his pacifier just to spite us. 

Also. He's less of a baby now. Well, not at all a baby. 
That makes me the tiniest bit sad. 


An Open Letter to the Universe

Tuesday, January 27, 2015


Woah. And just like that...snow!

In my last post, I put it out there. I asked the universe for some snow- and just a couple days later she delivered. Right on my doorstep! I'm going to need to start putting more things out there into the universe since I'm feeling pretty lucky at the moment.

Dear Universe. If you are reading this...here are a few other things I would deem acceptable to be dropped on my doorstep.

A laundry and/or bathroom-cleaning fairy.

Mindy Kaling. (But, don't drop her too hard. She might not dedicate her next book to me otherwise.)

A plateful of chocolate chip cookies.

The British Super Nanny.

Heck, drop all of England on my doorstep. Wait, no. Our landlords probably wouldn't like their house being completely crushed. Make that a one-way ticket to London.

Face lotion. I'm almost all out. Help a sister out.

And that's pretty much it. All very reasonable and realistic things.

Oh, and a potty-trained Pato. You'll have to train him pretty quick because I really start missing that boy if I've been away from him for longer than an hour or two. Potty-training your two-year-old in an hour is totally a thing, right?

*****

Also!

My latest post at What to Expect is up! I tell ya. Having a three-year-old has really humbled me. I used to think I was doing a pretty okay job in the parenting department...and then I realized that nope,  I actually kind of stink at it sometimes, and I'm just trying to keep myself afloat in a pool of other parents of other three-year-olds.

You can read the post HERE.


Can it just please snow?

Saturday, January 24, 2015



Well, things have sure been quiet over here.

January is an interesting month for me. Starting in September, you start getting excited about the holidays. Halloween. Thanksgiving. Christmas.

If there's one day that totally feels so un-festive, so UN-Christmas, it's the day after Christmas.

So, then there's January. It's cold and grey...which I actually love. And its my birthday month, which makes January a bit more fun. If only I enjoyed birthdays.

Don't ask. Maybe some other time I'll get into why I'm not too fond of my own birthday. I'm still figuring it out myself. It has nothing to do with getting older. More of the whole celebrating...eh. Too much pressure.

Anyway. I realized today that someday, I really hope we end up in a place that snows. This is the first year that we really haven't seen snow (except the sad and grey remains while up in Connecticut last weekend), and I tell ya. It's a real bummer. Like, kinda depressing. This winter just hasn't felt right without it. Doesn't help that S keeps asking if it's going to snow.

So, I'm going to publicly put it out there. Virginia, you'd really be doing be a solid if you let down some of the cold, white stuff. 

And all of you Virginians who are already begging for an early spring...don't beg so hard, okay?

Pine needles are the great deodorizer.

Wednesday, January 7, 2015



This is what happens when you are out-of-town for the holidays: it still looks like Christmas at our house. Well, not too too much. Christmas is pretty much the only holiday I decorate for, and even then, there's not a lot of it. 

But, we do still have a tree! It's looking kinda sad at the moment with little needles all over the floor- but the kids love it just the same. Plus, it still smells so heavenly! If it were socially acceptable to walk around with small bags of pine needles under my armpits I so would! (Shhh...never mind the whole prickly part. Roll with it.) 

And the Christmas cards! A couple keep trickling in and I can't bring myself to take them down yet. The kids like to point out their favorites (hint: they're ALL their favorites!) We talk about all the people in them and stories about them. 

I'm thinking maybe we keep them up till Valentine's Day?? I never did resolve to finally start being timely this year, did I? 

A fresh year.

Tuesday, January 6, 2015


"So fill your heart with what's important, and be done with all the rest."

You'd think my first post of the year would be kind of exciting. Full of resolutions, hopes, and reflection. Perhaps recalling some of my favorite moments of the past year and talking about how I've grown from the challenges I've encountered. 

Well, I'm not going to do that. I'm not going to put that kind of pressure on myself. While I do want to take this year to focus on my writing, or perhaps just write more, I want this space to remain a pressure-free zone. 

I recently experienced some harsh comments from others on a post that was picked up a little over a week ago. I recognize that those comments don't matter, but it still left me wondering about why people choose to spend time tearing others down. 

Anyway.

I'm feeling like 2015 is going to be a big year for us. Already we are looking ahead a preschools for S in the fall, and I feel the tides a'movin. Don't even get me started on thinking about her leaving my side multiple times a week. 

For now, I want to take things day by day. Enjoy my family, embrace the quiet (when I can find it) and do my best to be a good wife, a present mother, and the kind of friend I'd like to have. 

And hopefully, being done "...with all the rest." 

*Well, hey. That ended up being a lot more reflective than I thought. Huh! 


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