We just found out that we are having twins.
!!!
Thursday, March 4, 2010
Thursday, January 28, 2010
Jewel's perfect soup
My sister=in=law got married last August. We went to MI for a week, and several of those days were spent at Scott and Nettie's house. While we were there I looked through some of her Clean Eating magazines. Nettie has always been a healthy eater. She, and my sister are the ones that are always in the know about the healthy trends and diets. So Nettie gave me one of the Clean Eating magazines to take home. I pulled several recipes out, including one by someone named "Jewel" (no relation to the singer). This Jewel is a proponent of clean, healthful eating, and of cooking at home. She has worked with the stars, including Jennifer Aniston (one of my faves). Supposedly Jewel inspired Jennifer to give up her diet of powerbars, and restock her kitchen with healthful foods and start cooking again. So I decided to give the cannellini bean recipe a go last night. Used the homemade chicken stock, the beans, the garlic, the organic tomatoes (that the boys eat like candy, btw), and the onions. I was out of celery but I thought it would be ok. Well the soup simmered, the boys (all 3) hovered, and then we tasted. Let's just say that this was a long way of saying I ruined dinner last night and we ate pizza instead.
Sunday, January 24, 2010
I hear voices
The other night we were cuddled up in the big bed and I was reading "George and Martha" to the boys. I started using "voices" while reading the story, one for George and one for Martha. I thought about the kind of voice each character would have, they are hippos so they're pretty big which meant their voices would be on the deeper side. I raised Martha's voice by a couple of octaves and, I thought I was sounding good. Then Owen says "Mommy why are you talking in that funny voice? Just read it the right way." So I go back to my regular voice, but slip into George and Martha's voices a few pages later. Cue Owen, "Mommy, read normal! No more weird reading!"
So much for doing voices while reading. I guess I shouldn't complain, it certainly makes it easier for me.
PS: I forgot to include "I Love You, Stinky Face" to the list of our current favorite books. It's an adorable bedtime story.
So much for doing voices while reading. I guess I shouldn't complain, it certainly makes it easier for me.
PS: I forgot to include "I Love You, Stinky Face" to the list of our current favorite books. It's an adorable bedtime story.
Saturday, January 16, 2010
my favorite kid's books #382
It's probably not part 382 but I think I've written about this subject before, I'm just too lazy to go back and look. Anyway, this is a partial list that I hope to add to continuously. These are my current favorite children's books, in no particular order and not exhaustive - just some of the books we are reading and loving right now:
A Good Day by Kevin Henkes. Super sweet with illustrations I really like. I love Kevin Henkes. We first started reading him with my sister-in-law gave us Owen. We've read most of his books, and Owen has enjoyed all of them. This is a bit simpler than Henkes' other books (Lily and the Purple Plastic Purse, Sheila Ray the Brave, Chrysanthemum, etc) but it's perfect for Liam, and Owen enjoys it too.
George and Martha by James Marshall. I picked this book randomly at the library and it is the cutest book! It's funny for kids and parents, and just whimsical. It's five stories but they are only a few pages long each. Owen and Liam both laugh out loud when they/we read this book.
Leonardo the Terrible Monster by Mo Willems. I think this book is funny and sweet. We like Mo in our house, the Pigeon books are in high rotation at bedtime. I didn't really like Knuffle Bunny all that much but I think that's the exception. Tonight at dinner we were talking about George and Martha and Owen was recounting his favorite (i.e. silly) parts. The bathtub scene was first, followed by the mirror scene, and then the gold tooth scene. That led to a discussion on gold teeth and Owen said that George had a gold tooth "just like Tony". Hunh? Who? Ohhh, Tony, of "1,642 teeth like Tony" - from the Leonardo book. I guess it's never too early for the literary allusions right? It's enough to make an English Lit major/English teacher/mother's heart proud.
Since this is a "we" and a list of "our" favorite books I have to include the Scooby Doo paperbacks that Owen loves. If Scooby and the gang investigated it, then we have read it - the Tiki Curse, the Zombie Rock star, the Gruesome Ghoulie/Gorilla/Giant (they all start to run into each other). I have to say, the stories written by Jesse Leon McCann are the best ones. There is another writer who pens some of the Scooby stories and her writing just doesn't flow like Jesse's stories.
Any of your faves that we should be reading?
A Good Day by Kevin Henkes. Super sweet with illustrations I really like. I love Kevin Henkes. We first started reading him with my sister-in-law gave us Owen. We've read most of his books, and Owen has enjoyed all of them. This is a bit simpler than Henkes' other books (Lily and the Purple Plastic Purse, Sheila Ray the Brave, Chrysanthemum, etc) but it's perfect for Liam, and Owen enjoys it too.
George and Martha by James Marshall. I picked this book randomly at the library and it is the cutest book! It's funny for kids and parents, and just whimsical. It's five stories but they are only a few pages long each. Owen and Liam both laugh out loud when they/we read this book.
Leonardo the Terrible Monster by Mo Willems. I think this book is funny and sweet. We like Mo in our house, the Pigeon books are in high rotation at bedtime. I didn't really like Knuffle Bunny all that much but I think that's the exception. Tonight at dinner we were talking about George and Martha and Owen was recounting his favorite (i.e. silly) parts. The bathtub scene was first, followed by the mirror scene, and then the gold tooth scene. That led to a discussion on gold teeth and Owen said that George had a gold tooth "just like Tony". Hunh? Who? Ohhh, Tony, of "1,642 teeth like Tony" - from the Leonardo book. I guess it's never too early for the literary allusions right? It's enough to make an English Lit major/English teacher/mother's heart proud.
Since this is a "we" and a list of "our" favorite books I have to include the Scooby Doo paperbacks that Owen loves. If Scooby and the gang investigated it, then we have read it - the Tiki Curse, the Zombie Rock star, the Gruesome Ghoulie/Gorilla/Giant (they all start to run into each other). I have to say, the stories written by Jesse Leon McCann are the best ones. There is another writer who pens some of the Scooby stories and her writing just doesn't flow like Jesse's stories.
Any of your faves that we should be reading?
Thursday, December 17, 2009
The Nightly Sleep Battle
Sleep. It's something I LOVE. I don't need crazy amounts of sleep - eight or nine hours is perfect for me. Any more and I am sluggish and I get a "sleep headache" (I don't know if that's real but it's real to me. I used to feel it, before I had kids). Any less and I'm yawning throughout the day.
So I wonder, like probably every parent in the world, why don't my kids want to go to sleep? We have tried every strategy, routine, bedtime there is. With Owen we rocked him to sleep, we let him cry himself to sleep, we Ferberized him, everything. With Liam we tried letting him cry himself to sleep, but the kid will go an hour without stopping or falling asleep. My latest trick is to read to both of them at the same time, in our bed, and then turn out the light. I hold Liam and Owen snuggles up against me. This has been working like gangbusters for Owen. Ten minutes after lights-out, he's snoozing away. Then there's Liam. My baby boy will hold out for 20, 30, 45 minutes. I put out the lights tonight at 7:50 (20 minutes late, but that's the chicken pot pie's fault). It is currently 8:50, and he's still not asleep. I handed him over to Loren about 30 minutes ago so I could eat my dinner (truth? It's so I can surf the 'net). This way I can eat in peace, and I don't have to fret over when is this kid finally going to go to sleep.
The trade-off is that Owen will come back to our bed (I move him to his bed when I go to sleep) in the middle of the night. He's gotten so good that I don't even feel when he's climbing into the bed. I think he climbs in on Loren's side because that man is a log. Mr. Ed could climb over him and he wouldn't wake up. Liam on the other hand, will sleep through the night, in his own bed. I don't know which one I value more.
PS: I don't like talking about sleep because inevitably whatever sleep they're getting now, it'll change for the worse after I talk about it. I guess this means they'll be up at dawn tomorrow.
Epilogue: 8:54 - Loren just put Liam down in his crib. Success means we can watch "the Office".
So I wonder, like probably every parent in the world, why don't my kids want to go to sleep? We have tried every strategy, routine, bedtime there is. With Owen we rocked him to sleep, we let him cry himself to sleep, we Ferberized him, everything. With Liam we tried letting him cry himself to sleep, but the kid will go an hour without stopping or falling asleep. My latest trick is to read to both of them at the same time, in our bed, and then turn out the light. I hold Liam and Owen snuggles up against me. This has been working like gangbusters for Owen. Ten minutes after lights-out, he's snoozing away. Then there's Liam. My baby boy will hold out for 20, 30, 45 minutes. I put out the lights tonight at 7:50 (20 minutes late, but that's the chicken pot pie's fault). It is currently 8:50, and he's still not asleep. I handed him over to Loren about 30 minutes ago so I could eat my dinner (truth? It's so I can surf the 'net). This way I can eat in peace, and I don't have to fret over when is this kid finally going to go to sleep.
The trade-off is that Owen will come back to our bed (I move him to his bed when I go to sleep) in the middle of the night. He's gotten so good that I don't even feel when he's climbing into the bed. I think he climbs in on Loren's side because that man is a log. Mr. Ed could climb over him and he wouldn't wake up. Liam on the other hand, will sleep through the night, in his own bed. I don't know which one I value more.
PS: I don't like talking about sleep because inevitably whatever sleep they're getting now, it'll change for the worse after I talk about it. I guess this means they'll be up at dawn tomorrow.
Epilogue: 8:54 - Loren just put Liam down in his crib. Success means we can watch "the Office".
Sunday, December 6, 2009
A Review
This is important. This is my first, written, public, product review. I am a BzzAgent. That means that I receive various, different products; I try them; and I talk about them to the people around me. Hence the "bzz". I recently received a bottle of Aveeno Baby Essential Moisture Shampoo. Now, I am a follower of safemama.com. That is a website that lists and documents all the products, available for children, that are safe, or unsafe. It is JU-AMMED (say it aloud and it will make sense) packed with information, and suffice it to say, makes me a little paranoid. But, I still like to see what they say about the products I am using, especially soaps and shampoo since I read that phthalates can cause reproductive issues, testicular cancer in boys. I do want to be a grandma at some point in the future so I use products w/o bpa, phthalates, sulfates, etc. I use California Baby or Burt's Bees. I am comfortable with that choice, and only cringe a little when I shell out $8 for 6oz of BB. The California Baby costs more, and the best buy would be Weleda Baby.
When I signed up for the Aveeno Baby campaign, I thought it would be a good chance to try something new. So I tried it, and I like it. It has a built in conditioner, and with Owen's longish hair, that is a plus. Smells nice, works well, and I would use it, EXCEPT that Aveeno is not one of the companies announcing that they are not using phthalates, parabens, bpa, etc. in their products. I researched Aveeno tonight and found several sites documenting Aveeno's use of phthalates (often included, but not disclosed, under "fragrance"). Using these (unnecessary) chemicals on my kids is not an option for me so I won't continue using the Aveeno product. Other than that, the Aveeno Baby Essential Moisture Shampoo is a good product.
When I signed up for the Aveeno Baby campaign, I thought it would be a good chance to try something new. So I tried it, and I like it. It has a built in conditioner, and with Owen's longish hair, that is a plus. Smells nice, works well, and I would use it, EXCEPT that Aveeno is not one of the companies announcing that they are not using phthalates, parabens, bpa, etc. in their products. I researched Aveeno tonight and found several sites documenting Aveeno's use of phthalates (often included, but not disclosed, under "fragrance"). Using these (unnecessary) chemicals on my kids is not an option for me so I won't continue using the Aveeno product. Other than that, the Aveeno Baby Essential Moisture Shampoo is a good product.
Friday, November 20, 2009
more Owen-isms
Today we are sitting at the table "working". I am balancing the checkbook (I know, so responsible right? Just wait...Oprah doesn't come on for another 45 min. Ha-ha), and Owen and Liam are coloring in their coloring books. It's such a nice, kind of quiet, industrious time. Then Owen looks up and says,
"Mommy, I hope I don't become a teenager."
Me: "Why?"
Owen: "Because the guy at the karate show said teenagers are shady and bluh-bluh." (this is said with much hand waving and some muttering. He probably didn't catch exactly what the guy said, which was along the lines of teenagers not watching where they're walking).
Me: "yeah, I hope you don't become a teenager either".
"Mommy, I hope I don't become a teenager."
Me: "Why?"
Owen: "Because the guy at the karate show said teenagers are shady and bluh-bluh." (this is said with much hand waving and some muttering. He probably didn't catch exactly what the guy said, which was along the lines of teenagers not watching where they're walking).
Me: "yeah, I hope you don't become a teenager either".
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