Shinesalot’s blog

is never a good thing. 

On Tuesday mornings I babysit two very sweet children for a few hours.  They moved here (with their parents, of course) from England around the same time we moved here.  Anyway, for lunch their "mum" left some bagels, avocado (to be spread on the bagels), and a can of sardines.  Both children wolfed down their lunches, along with some cantelope and blueberries I had brought along.  (Littleman wolfed down his PB&J and didn't look twice at the sardines.)  I truly admire their tastebuds.  These two little wonders also eat pickled onions, tuna salad made with peas and tomato sauce, and hot peppers!  If only I had been more creative in my offerings to Littleman...

Anywho, I was very careful to not touch the sardines, using a fork to serve them.  I was also careful about wiping up the kiddies afterwards...but somehow that little 18 month old thwarted me!  As I left I could smell sardine on me.  My hands were scrubbed, but alas the smell was lurking somewhere else on my being.  When we leave this particular house on Tuesdays, if Littleman has been good, he is rewarded with 45 minutes at a McDonald's playland before his nap.  SO, I sat in McDonalds, TRYING desparately to write in my journal, but unfortunately sniffing my entire upper body until I located the spot on my shirt where the little guy must have clung before he was adequately cleaned.  After numerous attempts with wipes, I still reeked of fish until after 3:15 when Littleman FINALLY fell asleep for his nap and I could jump into the shower. (Yeah, yeah, it's going to be a late night - MIL is coming over for dinner, so I guess that will work out fine.)

Although it was mere two hours of smelling like pickled sardines...they felt like a small eternity.  Come on, people - you know how I am about smells!!!!!!  Hey, at least it wasn't spilled milk or worse, YOGURT!  ACK!  Can't even think about it....

A few more tidbits:

I can confirm that I will never be the mother of more than two.  Of course, now that I have typed that, I am certain I will be blessed with twins or that accidental "third" child someday down the line.  Watching three kiddies on Tuesday mornings, for a mere four hours is like being part of a three ring circus.  My head spins.  Okay...granted, if I had three they would not all be toddlers/preschoolers at the same time, still...it's A LOT to keep organized in ones head.  Don't get me wrong, I could do it.  But do it well??? Hmmm...let's just see how I fare with two.

Speaking of the #2 - I am sure you are all wondering how my little secret/vow is going.  Well, not but two days after I posted that blog, Papabear opens up a dialogue about "our family's future."  I had to bite the inside of my cheek to keep my excitement at bay.  He let on that he knows #2 arrival is imminent and he is making mental plans for it.  I said I will continue to not talk/stress about it...until September, when my birth control prescription runs out and I don't plan on refilling.  So there's that.

And finally, I am getting babysitting jobs left and right!!!!  It's pretty awesome.  I signed Littleman up for preschool (two days a week, for 2.5 hours, starting in September) and the director came out (overheard me chatting up the secretary, go figure!) and asked me for my resume!!!  We are going to try and work something out where I'd work when Liam's in school (different class, of course).  I'd get paid and half off the tuition...I'll let you know how that works out.

Finally, and MOST importantly - I should have posted this FIRST - the smell of fish overpowered me.  My dear, dear friend, SH, had a little boy, CFH, on Friday, July 18.  6 pounds 11 oz.  Healthy and happy are mom, dad, and baby.  It kills me to be so far away - she was right there when I had Littleman and really supported me when Papabear was away at school.  I am finding it difficult to not call her every five minutes to see how it's going.  (Don't worry, I've only called her twice since Friday....)  Anyway, I'm so happy for her and her family...and I will see her next week when I go to NY...but it won't be the same...ug.  (Not to mention, her having her baby has done NOTHING to quell my "baby-on-the-brain" syndrome....)

Nap time is abruptly over. :( Off I go.... 

This following video runs three minutes and 47 seconds and only die hard fans of Littleman and his silliness will want to watch it.  Papabear and I have had a 30 second rule when it comes to video "taping" our little boy.  Well...recently...he's just been so darn cute, that  I've broken the rule.  AND, I know there is something called editing and usually I do that on these video clips...however, today's video has four, maybe five clips of Littleman singing.  I simply could not decide which to toss.  In case you can't understand him, after he says, "Ladies and gentlemen!"  He usually follows with a jumble of "introducing squishy lizard (name)"  or "give it up for..."  As I said, it's a jumble, but you'll get the picture.  His singing is adorable...er...well, I am the mother, it might be awful, but clearly not in my eyes. If you can't bear to watch the whole thing, skip to the last ten seconds, he ends with a funny.  I hope it's not torture and that you'll enjoy.

So, this first video I am posting for two reasons.  The first is because these sock puppets are so darn cute I had to show them off (in essence, "tooting my own horn") and the second reason is because it's so cute, it'd be criminal NOT to share it.

When I was a very young girl my parents gave my brother, Chuckie, and I every opportunity to swim.  We loved the water and were natural "fish."  I, however, had a great aversion to getting water up my nose...and instead of holding my nose with my fingers, which I found incredibly annoying, I soon found out that I could cover my nostrils with my upper lip.  I could make a perfect little vacuum seal so no water would enter my nose.  Can't picture it? (Well, I am sure many of you already can because you have seen me do this.)  Here is a picture so you can see this amazing talent with your own eyes:

noseplug

Incredible, I know.  Freakish, too.  And oddly...I think I look kind of hot in this picture...hotter than any picture I've had taken in quite a while...

I digress.  Anyway, as I was on my forty-first or fifty-second boring lap in the pool the other day, I was reminded of this "talent" of mine.  I noted that I no longer need to do it.  I can swim like a grown up now.  And I was also reminded that my stepmom, KBC, found this skill of mine fascinating.  As a matter of fact, when I saw her in June she asked me to do it...and to this day she laughs with amazement (as I know she is laughing as she reads this).  So, KBC, this post is for you. :)  Thanks for always laughing with me and not at me! 

Well, as you know, I am not so good with the secrets.  Thankfully, I have had to bear the burden of keeping a secret precious few times.  Today, I need to blab a secret I have with myself that I am keeping from Papabear.  A couple of weeks ago I made a vow that I would not speak of having another baby until my birthday (September 23, for those of you who might possibly have forgotten). 

I did this because I know it stresses Papabear out to think about having #2.  He stresses about less time spent with Littleman, not enough money, not enough room in the house...all things that seem ridiculous to me.  We'll never have enough money (who does? I mean, really), if anything, this will give Papabear more time with Littleman, and I have already been working out how to change my office into a nursery with as little fuss as possible.

Papabear is on to me.  He's noticed already that I've "stopped talking about a sibling for Littleman."  He actually thanked me!  Ha!  He doesn't know that on my birthday I am going to ask him for one thing and one thing only: NO MORE BIRTH CONTROL.  And then we'll just see what happens....

I wanted to have this sibling for Littleman ages ago.  I am grateful that the "forces that be" clearly had a plan for me.  I can see now, after hanging out with so many "mom's of two" that I will be a much better "mom of two" with an older Littleman, rather than a younger one.  I am not sure I possess that kind of patience.  Well, I am sure the depths of my patience well run deep, however, I think that by the time I have #2 I will be much calmer than had it happened sooner.  I needed that time to chill out.  Don't get me wrong, guys, you can bet that I will resemble a chicken without a head in the early years, but I'm sure I will be a much cooler headless chicken. :)

So, technically, this is not a secret.  I just wanted to talk about something that is currently taboo in our house and I appreciate the minute you took to read this and shake your head at how silly I am.  If you can believe it, I am actually sticking to my vow - haven't peeped in about a month!

And, to end on something funny, Littleman actually calls his dad, "Papabear."  It is the cutest thing.  He'll walk through the house calling, "Papabear...." when he's looking for daddy.  Also, I made the mistake to telling Littleman that he will be not only visiting his old friend Skywalker at the end of July, but also sleeping over.  Now, just about twice a day, but sometimes more, Littleman will ask, "Is it the end of July?  Because at the end of July I am sleeping at Skywalker's house."  "Mommy, we are going to fly on an airplane to New York and sleep at Skywalkers..."  It just never ends....me and my big mouth. 

is a funny thing.  In an ideal world...well, in MY ideal world, I'd get my exercise milking the cows in the morning, sweating in the kitchen preparing hearty meals, and hiking up and down mountains with a baby strapped to my back picking blueberries and the like.  Not exactly feasible in the world...or area I live in today.  Currently, to stay fit, I hop, jump, spin, and "scissor" over a step to ludicrously loud pop music.  Or, sometimes I swim fifty or sixty lengths in the over-chlorinated pool (much more soothing but dreadfully boring).  Either way, both seem utterly unnatural. 

As I sweat buckets in the noisy studio, I look around and see that I am exercising with a number of Barbie dolls.  These "dolls" have showered and applied make up BEFORE class.  And, amazingly, nothing on them jiggles or bounces.  It's as if their boobs (which are often giant) are made of steel...but I suspect something else is keeping them...er...erect.  I am also bouncing around next to a couple of anorexics who have two or THREE risers on their step and add EXTRA spins and hops whenever they can.  They scare me...especially the eight month pregnant one - yeah, seriously.  She never exercises with less than two risers, her bones stick out every where, and there's a basketball sticking out under her spandex.  Scary.  And, totally unnatural. 

But, the gym and it's classes are the only way I will ever stay fit.  At least for now.  One day... perhaps I will live in or near the mountains again.  (And don't get me wrong, I'm not complaining.  I love my two hours of sweat and such in the morning...I think my soul just craves something else....)

In other news, this morning I hosted a "pancake breakfast."  I had fifteen people over...sixteen if you include the 10 week old, but she slept in her carrier the entire time.  Seven moms, the rest kiddos.  Surprisingly, the pancake part was pretty easy.  I had prepped the kitchen the night before, so all I had to do was make the pancakes.  All the moms pitched in with the serving and extra goodies.  BUT, inevitably, all that syrup or excitement worked it's way into the children.  Things ran smoothly for about the first hour or so, then, as one mom cleverly put it, "the wheels have begun to come off."  By the end, each mom was scurrying out of the house with a screaming toddler or preschooler or both!  Well, some playdates go off without a hitch, like yesterday's "L is for Lions and Llamas," and others just fall apart at the seams.  In the end, everyone had a good time...and even though it took me an hour to clean up afterwards (mopping the floor for the second time this week!), it was worth the conversation and Littleman's (so far) hour nap!!!!

And finally, Littleman had his third year check up yesterday.  He's exactly three feet tall and 28 pounds.  He is in the 13th percentile for both height and weight.  The doctor said that although he is on the short side, he's perfectly porportionate.  Lovely.  Also, she made a note that he might be color blind.  He kept switching his greens and reds and he was acting uncharacteristically shy and sometimes not answering at all.  She told me to google "colorblind tests" and do an informal check.  After doing so, I am about 99% sure Littleman is NOT color blind and was just yanking our chains.  Silly little goose.

Well, I tried to upload some pics of my pancake and lion adventures, but alas, the internet is not agreeing with me today.  Sorry for all the text...

Fourth1

After a bit of rain, we had a really nice fourth of July.  Here's the sunset.  We had lunch at the SIL's and swam in their pool.  Then we headed over to another BBQ with friends.  The kids got absolutely filthy, as everything was wet - Littleman and his friend, D, got WILD on the trampoline, I have a little video clip to show you.  They must have jumped/played for nearly an hour...but after filming only 23 seconds, it just felt wrong.  I couldn't stop them, though.  They were having such fun.  Later, they got to hold sparklers, briefly.  And the evening ended with fireworks and chocolate cupcakes. My kind of night! 

OH, we also sold the Jeep Liberty yesterday, yes, on the fourth.  The guy really wanted to buy it.  And today, Papabear was able to buy a Mini Cooper.  He really wanted a convertible, but did you know that two weeks ago they just stopped making them??? (Until March of 2009, anyway.)  We searched dealerships within a four to five hour drive, even in Oklahoma, but to no avail.  SO, Papabear had to settle for a sun roof.  I'm happy to report, though, that they had the color he wanted, British Racing Green, AND it is super charged...or has a super charger...I don't know.  Whatever.  He's happy.  It's a zippy little thing and WAY more fuel efficient than the Jeep.

Mini1

Mini2

Many of you do not know that I have wonderful cousins that live in Houston.  My dad's nephew married a Texan and has been living out here for 17 years (he was a native upstate New Yorker!).  They have two great kids and we had a lovely visit.  Littleman, clearly attaching himself to every visitor we get, cried and cried when they left. "I want my cousins to come baaaacccckkkk.....,"  he wailed.  The kid has inherited my tendency for melodrama.  Here are some pics from their brief, but wonderful visit.

Cousins1

Cousins2

Cousins3

I apologize about the red eye - I know there must be a "remover" on my PC somewhere...I just don't know where it is.

Cousins4

SO, a few hours after Littleman went to bed, (actually, just at I was tucking myself under the covers), Papabear and I heard the classic, "Mama," cry from his room.  I went in to check.  He was curled up in a ball, kicking off the covers, groaning, whimpering.  I had a feeling what was coming.  Although he has never truly "hurled" in his life (just one very small incident after some raspberries back in NY when he was two), a mother knows.  He was very sleepy, so when I asked if he needed to go potty, he just groaned.  Just as I picked him up, he leaned into my chest and...well...no need to go into great detail here, you get the idea.

Walle

Well, the movie, Wall-E, (http://disney.go.com/disneypictures/wall-e/) was great.  With or without children, it's a must see.  SH, you MUST see this before you have your baby and are too tired to go out to a movie!  Use those movie passes, have some popcorn, laugh, and think of me, b/c I would have gone with you if I weren't 2000 miles away!!!  I won't say anything else about it, other than it's the first animated film I've seen in a WHILE that's worth seeing again and again!