Lube it or lose it

When toddler-girl (TG) doesn't get what she wants or if she is doing something I don't want her to do and I take her away from it, she takes out her frustration on poor Ben so I have to be pretty vigilant.

Today, while we were at Crappy-Lube getting the Mazda's oil changed, TG decided that she wanted to play with the oily 'caution wet floor' sign sitting in the middle of the very dry waiting room floor. When I removed it from her dirty hands she got pissed and did the toddler stomp over to the stroller where Ben was napping. She climbed up onto the stroller and bear clawed Ben's face and ripped the pacifier out of his mouth in about 3 seconds flat. By the time I snatched her off him, he was shrieking and she was chewing on the binky.

I 'tossed' her in a chair, soothed Ben and prayed the minimum wage guys would get off their cell phones and finish up my car lickity split. About 5 hours later - okay, 5 minutes - I was swiping my debit card holding Emma UPSIDE DOWN because she was squiggling/struggling so much she flipped over in my arms.

We finally got loaded back into the car and I debated going to the supermarket with her in that mood - especially since there was an Arby's next door... But, I am a cheap-ass and we braved the market and made it home with no other episodes. Phew.

Ben survived the attack as he's getting pretty tough. His neck and back are getting strong and he is not such a meatball anymore. He has moved out of the newborn stage and is truly a baby now. He coos and kicks and grabs at my hands, smiles a lot, is sleeping longer stretches at night and is more alert during the day.

We have been having more playdates, too, hanging out with different kids - some older, some younger - which has been good for not only Emma, but for Mama to have some adult conversation. Yay!

______________________________________

Brian and I text each other 20 times a day... I will now end my blogs with the "Text of the Day" quoting my favorite kiddo oriented text. Today there were 2.

1) (Upon leaving Crappy-Lube) Is it ok to give Emma valium?
and
2) (Helplessly watching Emma torture Apollo as I was nursing Ben and couldn't get up and stop her) Your daughter has added doggie proctologist to her list of possible careers...

Night Terrors, anyone?

Today was one of those "what the heck do I do today?" days... It is 8pm already - I have no idea where the last 12 hours went! I might be in a bit of a daze...

Emma woke up - actually I don't think she was awake at all - but Emma was up at 1am screaming at the top of hers lungs. It was one of those, "Help me, a python is squeezing me to death!" screams. Brian rushed in to soothe her, got her calmed down, turned on her music to relax her and came back to bed. A few minutes later she was screaming bloody murder again. This time I scooped her up out of her crib and held her in a bear hug and just danced with her humming softly along with the music. The screams subsided into whimpers, then into short breaths, then sleep. I put her back into the crib and she was good to go.

About an hour later Ben was ready for his middle of the night snack. I fed him and came back to bed, but I couldn't fall back to sleep. Then Apollo started in with the licking and chewing of his feet. HE DRIVES ME CRAZY!

I think I finally crashed around 4am, got a good 3 hours in before Ben wanted his "coffee" and have been awake ever since. I think. I really can't remember the day. Zoinks.

A Nike commercial in my backyard!

It is becoming more and more apparent that Emma is sucking up everything we say and storing it for later use. Every day she comes up with a new phrase that makes me wonder, "Now how did she learn that?" Only to realize later that I had utilized a word or two of it recently.

For example, she was digging at the rocks in her sandbox this afternoon and wanted me join her. She handed me one of her shovels and said, "Mommy, do it. Do it, Mommy!" I am guessing that came from the myriad of times we have said to her when she wants us to do something for her, "You do it!"

Then she was standing at the front door this evening saying, "See guys?" Huh? See who? "See guys, Mommy!" I had no idea what men she was talking about until I heard the neighbor kids outside playing and figured she must be referring to them and my use of, "Hello! What are you guys up to?" on the occasion when we head out to play with them.

My favorite is, "What do you want to eat for dinner tonight?" and she answers, "Brockeeee!" as in broccoli. YUM!

99 Red Balloons

I dread the supermarket - not because I have 2 kids and it is a pain in the ass to get them in and out of the car and around the market and back into the car and out of the car and into the house. No, I've got that down pat! My double stroller is easy to maneuver with one hand and I pull the shopping cart behind me with the other.

I dread the supermarket for the damn balloons. As soon as Emma sees one she starts saying very sweetly, "Balloon?" That ever so slowly escalates into full blown screaming, "Balloon!! Balloon!!" No problem if we are in Trader Joe's - they have balloons handy and friendly people willing to cut one down for her and give her one. But if we are in Vons or Ralphs - look out! So far as I can tell, they only have those freakin' $8 celebratory balloons, and the one time I asked the cashier if they have the free balloons she looked at me as if to say, "Even if we did, I couldn't be bothered to walk over to the customer service desk to get you one."

Whoever taught her balloons were for playing and not for looking owes me a babysitting sessions so I can go to the supermarket alone! ...Grandma Lou may be the culprit - I'll have to do some investigating.

Daddy will cook dinner, don't worry.

When I want Brian to do something (and often vice versa), I say to Emma, for example, "Does Daddy want to change Ben's diaper then Mama will feed him?" or "Don't worry, Emma, Daddy will get you some milk when he is done."

Often Daddy does the requested things - well more than often, always, because he is a big sweetheart.

Well today, Emma, had an answer for me when I asked, "Does Daddy want to put Emma in her bed for a nap?" Without hesitation she nonchalantly said, "No." and continued playing with some toys. Daddy glanced up at me with the, "I guess she told you." look and we both had a good chuckle.

Aunt Blanket

Emma has never been a kid who needed a security "item". She was barely a pacifier kid, and never sucked her thumb. She never carried around a blanket - until now.

Last week when she had the croup, Emma would not separate from her blanket. Everywhere she went, blanket came with her. I am guessing it comforted her during her sickness. Well, she has recovered fully - but she hasn't let go of that blanket. And, she doesn't called the blanket - blankie - or any semblance of that. She calls the blanket, Tia - as in "Auntie" in Spanish.

I have no clue where that came from.

Froggle Rock (...or am I the only one who thinks my titles are clever?)

Yesterday, Rosie, my next door neighbor - mother of 3 - gave us the sandbox her kids had outgrown. We were very gracious and spent the day researching where to buy sand to fill it up at a reasonable price.

Turns out, the sand you buy at Home Depot cheap isn't sand at all but some kind of carcinogenic granite powder that causes all sorts of lung problems from asthma to lung cancer. Needless to say, I'm not interested in exposing Emma to lung challenges at 20 months so I kept researching...

I found many interesting suggestions and decided on - not sand - but pea gravel for the sandbox. Less mess to be tracked into my home, and if you remember, Emma is obsessed with rocks. A win win situation! And, I spent only about $18 to fill the sandbox.

After her nap today, I led her outside to the covered sandbox which is in the shape of a frog. "Fog? Fog?" Yepper, sweety pie, a frog! Then I removed the cover and her eyes lit up like it was Christmas morning - except this time it wasn't ripped up wrapping paper and discarded boxes to play with, it was millions of ROCKS! She immediately started removing the pea sized rocks from the sandbox in sheer delight and dropping them next to it. I am realizing that will be my battle, but I think it will be easier and cleaner to sweep up pebbles than sand, and I don't think the pebbles will be tracked throughout my house...

Hooray!

Ben update

Wow! Busy week, I think. I mean I don't really remember what I have done since I last posted, but I haven't posted so I must have been busy, right? ...or maybe it is the loss of brain power from being in the baby bubble for 20 months now. (Sidebar: Wouldn't change it for the world!)

Ben had his 2 month well visit to the pediatrician on Thursday. He passed all his tests (eyes, hears, neck strength) with flying colors. I was a little nervous when the doctor was listening to Ben's heart though. He listened, moved the stethescope, listened some more, moved the scope, listened some more, moved the scope, listened some more, moved the scope, listened some more, moved the scope, listened some more, MOVED THE SCOPE, LISTENED SOME MORE - I was screaming on the inside, "What the hell is wrong with his heart???" - while being my calm, cool self on the outside... The doctor continued to listen as my blood pressure rose, then simply stated, "Sounds good!" I almost punched him!

He weighed in at 12 lbs 14 oz, up 5 pounds since leaving the hospital. I knew he had filled out nicely, but 5 lbs - holy cow! He also grew 4 inches - long torso, short legs - just like mama and daddy... Wait, I guess there was no choice!

He has also been giving us longer stretches between feedings at night the past few nights. We got a 6 hour snooze out of his last night, a trend we are hoping continues! Emma started sleeping through the night at about 8 weeks - my fingers are crossed that Ben will take on that trait.

I sorry!

When Ben cries, I often say to him, "I'm sorry, buddy, am I ignoring you?" Then I snuggle him, or change his diaper, or nurse him, or whatever it is he truly needs.

Well, apparently Emma has picked up on some of the vocabulary. This morning Ben was sitting in his seat and he started to cry. Emma ran over to him and started petting his legs saying, "I sorry, baby ben. I sorry." It was so freakin' adorable!

Later when I was blow drying my hair and Emma came running into the bathroom yelling, "I sorry, mama, I sorry!" I quickly turned off the blow dryer thinking she had done something wrong and was apologizing for it. I did a once over of the house and found nothing wrong - except Ben was fussing in his bassinet!

Apparently, "I sorry" means "Ben is crying." to my cute little toddler.

Prescription for Heartache

Ben had his first"real" experience with a babysitter today.

And when I say, "Ben had his first 'real' experience with a babysitter today." I really mean, "Mama had her first 'real' experience away from her baby boy today..."

We have been apart before but he has either been with Daddy, Gramma Lou, or one of my best friends who love my kids like they are their own. This time he was with a more than competent mother of 6 who I have known for a few months who lives in my neighborhood and goes to my church.

I found myself checking my cell phone every 15 minutes to see if she had called...

Of course, she didn't call, and when I went to pick him up she said he was an angel, no trouble at all, and handed him back to me in perfect condition.

Why do I fret so much?

Emma, on the other hand, is not in perfect condition. She continues to battle el Diablo croup. She was pretty hoarse all day and I could barely understand what she was saying. Her cough has calmed down and she ate a pretty good dinner tonight so I am hopeful she is on the road to recovery. Fingers crossed!

My own personal Sea World

How is it that Emma went to bed a perfectly healthy child last night, then woke up with a raging case of the croup this morning? Poor kid has been barking like a seal all day and running a low grade fever.

I bleached out her humidifier and put a new filter in it, changed her sheets and washed all her blankets. I am hoping it is allergy related and not the viral kind - let's see how she sleeps tonight and if I will be making an unscheduled trip to the Pediatrician tomorrow...

So far Ben seems fine. He has his 2 month well visit this week on Thursday. I am curious as to what he weighs. This kid is not afraid of nursing and has filled out quite nicely.

Of course, I am wondering if I will get any sleep tonight. I am trying not to worry, but isn't that what we mamas are supposed to do?

I'll take, "Who is..." for $200, please.

Let's play a guessing game. I am going to list everything mischievous a certain person did today and you, faithful reader, get to guess who I am talking about.

1) Jumped on the couch that is up against the window and slipped and pulled the curtains down.
2) Picked up a fresh poop of our dog, Cassidy, and smooshed it in her hands like it was play-doh.
3) Wacked Ben in the head with the remote control when I was feeding him because she was mad I wouldn't let her watch Oswald.
4) Threw a tantrum on the kitchen floor when I wouldn't let her snack on a milkbone.
5) Threw an animal cracker across the room when I suggested it as a substitute for previously mentioned milkbone.
6) Plucked every flower within reach off the trellises along our fenced in backyard and pulled them apart petal by petal.

Here is a hint, it wasn't Ben - my handsome 7 week old... he's an angel - see the video for proof.

My Walton Mountain

I am getting used to "G'nite, mama." as I put Emma to bed. It is music in my ears each and every time and continues to melt my heart.

Tonight as I was closing her bedroom door, I heard, "G'nite, baby ben. G'nite, dada. G'nite Aunt Biki, G'nite dodo (our dog), G'nite cassidy (other dog), G'nite Raul (uncle), G'nite Harry (uncle's dog), G'nite GammaWoo (grandma)..." She listed everyone she knew until she fell asleep.

Freakin' awesome!

Like sands through the hourglass...

When I am not looking in the mirror and I think about how old I am, age 25 generally comes to mind. When I do look in the mirror, that number rises to about 26... : )

I don't know what it is about age 25, I guess because I am blessed to be healthy and happy - that is where my mind has etched itself.

It is no secret that my real age needs about 12 more years added to it - even then, although I have been on my own for 19 years, I've never felt "grown up". Never - that is until today.

Today, I drove to my new babysitter's house to pick her up, bring her back to my house, she watched Emma while I went to work, I came home, then drove her back home. A very normal occurance, one would think, yet oddly enough, a first for me. Having a babysitter was certainly not the first, it was that whole 'pick up the sitter/drive the sitter home' thing that was new.

You see, as a teenager I was the local babysitter. But I didn't have a car and lived in the countryside, so if you required my services you had to shuttle me to and fro. That, my dear readers, is why for the first time I felt "all growed up"... The tables have turned. I am a mom, and for some strange reason - I feel as though I am now officially an adult.

You Hungry?

In the saga of the ever developing language skills of my 20 month old...

"Baby?" Yes, Emma, this is the baby.
"Baby Ben?" That's right, it's baby Ben.
"Baby Ben bite?" That's right, sweety, Baby Ben is eating.
"Baby Ben bite boobie?" Yes, Emma, Baby Ben bite boobie...

Sweet Emmaline

Emma is an amazing eater - kid will generally eat whatever you put in front of her - including GREEN vegies. She loves green beans, broccoli, asparagus - what kid eats asparagus??? EMMA!

Tonight I made a pork loin for dinner with brown rice and mashed sweet potatoes... Emma is hit and miss on sweet potatoes. If they are sliced into thin circles, she will generally eat them. If they are mashed, like tonight, she will generally reject them. I doled out everyone's plate in the kitchen and handed Daddy her plate to put in front of her. I figured she would bypass the veg and go straight for the pork, so I wasn't too worried that she was alone at the table eating while I finished serving up my dish. When I came out of the kitchen and into the dining room the above picture is what I found. She had housed the sweet potatoes - no fork - just handfuls shoved into her mouth. I am guessing she would have licked the plate if she knew that was an option.

...Brian and I will be out of town for the next couple of days so I probably won't be able to post again until Sunday. Grandma Lou was kind enough to fly to LA to Emma-sit and Ben is coming with us to the convention. I should have some interesting stories to tell upon my return... Maybe Grandma can guest post while I am away...?

The Adversary failed again.

When I was a kid - around 5 or so - I had a sweatshirt that had the saying on it, "The Devil Made Me Do It." I loved that sweatshirt. I used to wear it often and it used to piss my God-fearing Grandmother off when I wore it to her house.

I thought of that sweatshirt today when Emma took a crayon and dropped it into our forced air floor heating unit after I distinctively told her not to do it and to stay away from the heater. Right before she dropped it through the grate, she looked at me out of the corner of her eye with that sly toddler grin on her face - "Emma, no, don't drop the cray- EMMA!" Plunk, down it went to slowly melt on cold (or as cold as CA can be) winter nights...

Then, of course, that hint of evilness all gets erased away when I put her into bed tonight. As I was lifting up the safety gate on her crib she says, "Good night, mama." I have said, "Good night, Emma," to her for a year and a half now and tonight she returned the sweetness. LOVED IT!

I walked out of her room, closed the door - my heart swooning - and put my ear to the door. She started making snoring noises and saying, "Hush, hush," a line from our favorite Backyardigans lullaby song. CAN THIS KID GET ANY FREAKIN' CUTER?

So remind me of this tomorrow when she throws a fall-on-the-floor-fists-a-banging-tantrum because I won't give her another cracker or won't let her bounce on the sofa or won't let her chew on Ben's binky...

I love being a mom.

Emma's Garden of Eden

The first thing Emma says when she wakes up every morning is, "Bebe?" Yes, Emma, the baby is in the other room. "Baby Ben?" That's right, the baby's name is Ben, good girl.

Then, because she usually wakes up around 7:30 comes, "Oswald?" Yes, Emma, you can watch Oswald, but it doesn't come on until 8:00. "Daisy? Weenie?" Yes, they come on at 8:00 with Oswald.

Next, as I lay her on her changing table for a fresh diaper, she will look out the window and scream, "Outside!!" Yes, Emma, you can go outside, but you have to wait until later because it is wet outside. "Outside! Outside! Outside!" Yes, sweetheart, after breakfast you can go outside. "Shoes?" Yepper, baby girl, you have to wear shoes. "Shoes! Shoes! Shoes!" she freaks out until you show her that a thief has not stolen her beloved shoes from Abuelita. Here, sweety, calm down, here are your shoes.

This dialogue can be heard on a DAILY basis. The kid is obsessed with her brother, a blue cartoon octopus, and playing outside in her shoes from Grandma. I guess I shouldn't complain - she has no idea who Barney is and doesn't want to be barefoot outside like most children!

FYI - while outside she is quite the adventurer. She plays with the Arrowhead 5 gallon empties on our deck arranging them in different formations. She tries to stick things into the small necks of the bottles sometimes succeeding depending on the size of the object. She got her hand caught in one the other day. She had an odd shaped rock in her hand and had somehow gotten it into the bottle without letting go, but then couldn't extract her had because the rock wouldn't come back out the neck and she refused to let go of it - quite funny - not sure if she was more upset about her hand getting stuck or losing her new friend, Rock.

Our monthly water delivery was today and the empties were taken away... So, do me a favor, if Arrowhead delivers you some water with a rock floating around in it, would you mind returning it to Emma?

yes that's an exercise ball in my backyard

why don't they make one of these for adults????? Don't tell me you wouldn't elbow each other to get on this thing.


and no, i haven't EVER used the exercise ball...


Daddy