A Spring Crush

The first truly warm days of spring are always when it starts.  My heart starts fluttering a bit and I get giddy at the thought of maybe not needing a jacket today.  I tentatively step out the door, feel the air and smile. It has begun.

I have an annual love affair with Spring.  After winter (even a winter like we've just had) I am ready to heed the call of Spring, to fall in love with the outdoors again.  And it is like an adolescent crush in so many ways.  I find myself wanting to spend all my waking hours together,  looking for excuses to be outside.  Picnics at the playground, dinner in the yard, knitting on a blanket.....does the house really need to be cleaned?    I find everything Spring does fascinating.  Wow, look at those shoots coming up, gosh those buds are opening quickly, just look at those sweet ducklings.  I can't get enough of Spring's warm embrace, nothing like the good warm hug of the sun.  Of course, even crushes have their lover's spats, mine are spring allergies.  

But even between the sneezes and tissues, I am in love.   

And so, while the calendar technically still said winter, and while the ground is still brown and not green, my suitor came calling.  "Come out and play", it called, and I went.

 Austin heard it calling too.  It said, the sand is warm and dry.  Last years buckets and shovels are lonely, please come and play.

 He was only too happy to oblige.  It called,  "the creek needs someone to muck about in it.  Someone to get mud on their shoes and pants, someone to loosen the leaves with a stick."

 The child aims to please.   It called to the dog, "Come old girl, roll in my grass, feel the warmth on your belly,  let my spring newness make you feel young again."  And Daisey got up off the couch and came.

It called to the chickens, "Come and scratch, there are grubs to be found and cool drinks in the creek to be had."  And a chicken never has to be called twice to dinner.

It called out to the snake, "come out of you burrow, the air is warm.  Take the heat deep into your skin."  And the snake slithered out and basked in the warmth

It called to the flowers, "come my pretty ones, put on your finest dresses.  Your time to shine is now."  And so they are getting ready for the great Spring Ball, dressing to impress, for their time is short, before big green leaves and tall, slim grass will take their places.

And so it begins, each one heeding the call in it's own way.  Each one falling in love all over again.

How about you, are you feeling the love?


On another note, it's also time for a little spring knitting. The Gnomes are popping out ready to play.

Base Camp

It's been a kinda crazy, hectic week.  Some of the busy-ness was planned, some of it was beyond our control.  Life is like that, but it left us out of our rhythm and feeling a bit out of sorts.  Not enough sleep makes me cranky and Austin a bit whiny and needy.  We were not our best, shining selves, to be sure.  So to balance out the feeling of always being on the go, we needed a few days of just being home, catching up on sleep and hanging out with the dog.

Austin is now at an age where he can just start playing some simple games.  If you have a little one in the house, I highly recommend this one:

It's a Lotto game by Eboo.  It's cute, colorful, well made and easy enough for a two year old to play, but interesting enough for older siblings too.  It's like the game of Memory, except instead of searching for two matching cards, you try to find a card that matches your board. I wondered if it would be too hard for Austin.  Judging by the fact that he beat my husband and I in all but one game, I think he's ok with it!  He was really good at remembering which cards were where.  He would tell Brian on his turn, "Papa, you need the lion card, it's right here!" and point to the needed card.

We also played a game called Little Circuit.  I'm pretty sure the research and marketing department will not win any awards for such an odd, bland name, but the game itself is pretty good.  You put together a puzzle which forms the game board and then roll the die to move your piece along the path.  The die has two non color sides which cause you to jump ahead or move back, jut to add interest.

Games are great, but the kid in me was really excited about the new Blob watercolor paints we got.  They are made from plant extracts and smell really yummy.  They come in powder form, so you just add water to mix up the amount you need.  We loved them.  Austin wore one of Papa's old scrub shirts, which makes a pretty good smock.

He also had a blast with an old phone we have.  Remember when phones had CORDS?  And metal parts inside?  This one weighs a ton.

The Potty Chronicles

And finally, since we were planning to be home and near a potty, I decided to work a little more on the potty training front.  I have a pretty laid back approach.  I see no reason to make this any more stressful than it has to be for either Austin or myself.  I am confident that he will use the potty when he is ready.  I do not for see sending him off to college in diapers.  That being said, since he is showing an interest and has had quite a bit of success, I'm going with the flow, so to speak . (ok, bad pun, couldn't resist, sorry) And so for a few hours a day, I put him in underwear and hope for the best.

This little blue pot is not an over sized coffee mug, it is in fact a chamber pot.  And although Austin has a lovely potty with a back and comfortable looking seat and also an eye catching Thomas the Train cushioned seat for the toilet (gift from Omi) , THIS is the potty of choice.  This humble looking, small metal bowl is the object of all his potty love.  He smiles and giggles when he is "going" and then proudly carries it to the toilet to dump it in, leaving a few sloshing puddles in his wake.  He is so proud and excited.  I only leave him in undies for part of the day though, because, let's face it, there are only so many accidents, drips, leaks, sloshes and changes of clothes,  (his and mine) that this mama can deal with in one day and remain sane.  I'm sure as time goes on and he uses his potty more and more, the undies will stay on longer and longer.  But like I said, we are enrolled in the 'less stress is best' program, so for now, this is working.... sort of.  And this is what I am learning.

1.  Potty training is a messy business.

2. It is important, really important, to remind a little boy to aim downward.  Every time.  Every few minutes.  (see above mentioned note on changes of MY clothes)

3. They can go often, like every few minutes kind of often.  In large amounts.

4.  They can not go at all, even if you sit with them and read 3 Richard Scarry books and 4 Babybug magazines.  Then, as you are  helping them get dressed, they will go.  (again, see note on changing MY clothes)

5. If you are in a hurry to leave the house, they will want to try to use the potty as you are putting on their coat.

6. Rags and spray bottles, very important.

7. Stickers, good, wet socks, can only be bad

8.  There is nothing cuter than seeing the proud smile and hearing, "Mama, I DID it!" whether or not he remembered to aim down.

a small request

I have been told that it is nearly, if not completely, impossible for people to leave a comment on my blog.  I checked my settings and made a few changes. I think that should resolve the problem.  If anyone has a minute to give it a whirl and try to leave a comment so I'll know if it's working, I'd really appreciate it.  Thanks!

A Day at the Zoo

Yesterday was a perfectly gorgeous day.  And to make it better, my husband had the day off.  Wanting to make the most of this gift of a day, we headed to the zoo.  My sister had given us a family membership to the zoo as a Christmas present.  It's a great gift.  It does not require batteries, doesn't take up space in our living room and does not have an electronic soundtrack of Elmo's voice whining at me the live long day.  Plus it gives us a chance to be together outside as a family.  Yes, there is always a part of me that wishes all the animals could be free on the Savannah, or where ever they would normally be.  But I also know that part of the reason I love animals is because I have always been exposed to them.   Zoos give people a chance to get face to face with animals they would never otherwise meet.  And having met them, they start to care about them.  Still, I am thankful for the changes in zoos.  I remember when the lions were in actual cages, with bars, pacing back and forth, instead of in large outdoor "habitats."  On today's visit, they were stretching out leisurely, basking in the sun and adoration of their audience.

I know it's definitely getting to be spring, because that special, "love is in the air" feeling was certainly on display everywhere in the animal kingdom yesterday.

 Austin and Papa got to ride on this very cool Rain Forest themed merry-go-round.  Each animal was really very beautiful and creative.  My favorites were the butterflies.

Signs of spring were popping up everywhere and it made my heart glad.

 We also got to check out this indoor exhibit for kids where everything was climb-able, educational and really fun.  There were huge bees and honeycombs, frogs and tadpole eggs, caterpillars, enormous flowers and plants, beaver dams and water, hollow logs to explore and...

a gigantic, multi-level tree, with more stairs inside than I care to climb at any one time!

Of course we visited the petting zoo, fed the ducks,

and gave the goats a lot of toddler love

And who doesn't love a really big, really red tractor!

Oh, to be two and have control of such a steering wheel!  This is what little boys dreams are made of.  Well, at least, THIS little boy.

But, what made me laugh the most, was the fun this little guy had playing with a wild domestic leaf.  With all the animals around him, all the excitement of seeing other little kids, all the sights, smells and exhibits, what does he do?

He picks up the leaf, throws it, giggles loudly and chases it, picks it up and starts all over again.  He did this for a good long while, loving it all the more with each chase.  He knows how to squeeze the juice out of life.   I love this kid.

Like I said, it was a great day, full of great memories.  I am so blessed to be alive, to be a mama to this little one and to have Brian to share these days and memories with.

Life is a gift we open one day at a time.  Some days are sweeter than others and leave a good taste in our memory.

This was one of them.

And on the drive home...

a sure sign of a day well spent.

Hope your day was just as lovely.

Resting and the mysteries of the universe

 This one knows how to rest, how to take it easy.

 So does this one.

 Really, it's what they do best.  Sleeping, cuddling, taking it easy.

 Not so much this one.

And this one is the one who needs the rest.  The one who was awake half the night coughing.  The one who should be exhausted.  But I ask you, really now, does this look at all like the face of someone ready for a nap? I didn't think so either.  One of the great mysteries in life, just behind disappearing socks in the dryer, is how small children can actually convert fatigue into pure energy.  When I am tired, I slow down, I have trouble concentrating, I look for activities that involve sitting, or if possible, SLEEPING.  Not toddlers, somehow the exhaustion itself gives them a second wind and they put forth an amazing display of energetic frenzy. Which is how I know he is tired.  It took me a while to figure this out when he was a small baby, it being so opposite and all, but I learned, lots of energy plus obnoxious behavior equals nap time!  I put him in his pack and play for afternoon naps which allows me the freedom to work, tidy up and clean the upstairs without disturbing his nap.  Luckily, he still fits comfortably in it and we have an agreement about not climbing out.

 We apparently have no such agreement about leaping and jumping for joy in it during nap time.  

And so this is how I left the little tike, hopping with glee, but hoping the laziness of the cat and dog sleeping only inches away on the couch would be contagious and have a soporific effect on Austin.  It must have worked.  He did fall asleep.  Now, if I could only figure out how to deal with this cough.  Any suggestions?

Ode to an Egg Cup

The lowly egg cup.

Once there was an egg cup.  A little chip graced it's bottom rim which never seemed to diminish the smile of it's apple cheeked face.  It was not even known whether the happy child was a girl or boy.  No matter, the egg cup did it's job faithfully and efficiently and always with a smile.  Where it came from, no one seemed to know.  The mother would say, "phew, I don't know, probably from Germany.  It was always there on Oakley Street."  She was not the sentimental sort and was not a collector of family stories.  The daughter would have loved to know.  She collected stories and kept alive the memories of relatives she knew and never knew.  She did not know the past of this little egg cup, but she held stories of her own.  Memories of soft boiled eggs for breakfast and most especially after an illness, when her mother would present her with an egg and toast, her first real meal on the road to recovery.  The girl had been sick often in her childhood and the egg cup was a little friend she could count on, always smiling always offering nourishment.

Now the little egg cup lives in her house, and today for the first time, it served the daughter's little boy his first soft boiled egg.  And he liked it.  He liked the egg and he liked the cup.  A new friendship was born and a new chapter in the story written.  

 And a lucky find....
Today when I got the mail, Austin said, "Mama, a chair for Austin."  And he was right.  The neighbors had thrown away a small doll sized highchair and it lay abandoned in the wet grass.  It had been rained on all morning, but after a good rub down, it was as good as new.  Of course convincing Austin that this chair is for Teddy or JoJo may take some time.  "Chair is for Austin" he insists.  I just hope we don't have a reenactment of Goldilocks and baby bears chair.

Hope your day was a happy one.