In The Center Ring.....

The fearless mom...Who tackles indescribable chaos single handed on a daily basis with out losing all of her mind...

Yep that's me. In an attempt (foolish) to consolidate things Princess and Stinky now share a room. Which means they share a bed. Which means they get into a TON of mischief.

Today: Princess broke a shelf that had 50 lb anchors in the wall (considering she only weighs 28 lbs I am intrigued by this feet)

She had a baby powder blizzard on Calico cat (never do you want your four year old to come down stairs and say 'Momma I am really very sorry but...' (by the way we had a previous baby powder explosion..so at least I had some of the cleaning up tactics down)

Somehow the curtain rod got broken....not sure about this one yet

A lamp got broken again...not sure about it.

And a door jam

Stinky emptied shaving cream on to a dog.. did you know they do not like it and it makes them sick???

My daily routine 4am until 7pm - tea

7pm until momma last call - wine

my house is a circus.

tales from the front lines of the kitchen

Last night I set out to prepare a wonderful and nutritious dinner for my family. The menu: herb roasted chicken, asparagus, and roasted garlic mashed potatoes. I was on the phone with a friend while arguing with the chicken coaxing it out of the plastic container... debating with the giblets bag to remove it; only to find the roasting pan I had selected was not the right size *gasp*. In my defense I bought the chicken at 6 am.. but it really was a giant bird. To get the proper size pan would require a miners light and potentially heavy equipment why?? because I seem to collect pots and pans the way my grandmother collected hummels.

After procuring the correct and giant pan from the depths of the cabinet greasing it and plopping the bird in it I proceeded to season it. All went well with that...and i placed the chicken with anxious anticipation in the oven to allow it to cook. After about half an hour I began to wonder why there were no aroma's wafting through the house. A quick inspection revealed that I had not turned the oven on *DOH*.

The lessons: a family our size does not need an 8 lb chicken and chickens cook faster when the oven is on.

motrin-gate

This happened a little while ago and I have been digesting it for a while.

Motrin ran an add about the aches and pains of babywearing- how it is the 'stylish' thing to do, how it causes back pain, how it is supposedly a great bonding experience, how it makes you and official mom.

Okay...I am all about pretty things and it certainly doesn't hurt that carriers are pretty. They have become something of an accessory for my clothes because I am always wearing someone.

Aside from that I have some pretty significant issues with the wording and the choice to run this add.

One being that it causes pain.. Well not really. at least not to me. I have wrist pain when I just hold the baby...and opposing hip pain from having poor posture. Using carriers allows me to center the baby over me and incorporate her into my balance.


My second and possibly largest issue with the ad campaign is the 'supposedly' a great bonding experience. Well any NICU mom can tell you kangaroo care/preemie wearing is one of the best things you can do for your baby and for you. You help your baby regulate her temperature, breathing, heart rate, you help her gain weight, you help her eat...just by being close to her. You teach her that you are there for her to meet her needs to trust and to depend on. That connection lasts forever.
Some of the best moments of my life have been spent snuggling my preemie in a sling.

As the baby gets older wearing her allows her core to strengthen, challenges her vestibular system...it also reassures her that you are there...that you will take care of her..that security and connection is an awesome bonding experience no 'supposedly' about it.

The other main issue is whether or not it makes you an 'official' mom. Loving your baby makes you an official mom. Nothing else. The immense and indescribable feeling of dedication makes someone an official mom babywearer or not.

gross bath

I was under the impression that a bath or a shower was supposed to leave with you feeling refreshed and clean. Not icky.

Meet bath toys- squirters especially. Last night when bathing the kids they began tormenting each other...as expected. the mold and mildew were not expected. EWWWW. Ick gross.

Need new toys.

ode to my dyson

Thank you to sister wife for introducing my to a machine that I have grown to love as much and sometimes more than my husband (hey it cleans up...if Brian cleaned up...)

I never new I could love a machine an appliance a symbol of woman's imprisonment in the home as much as I love my dyson. It picks up cat hair, dog hair, bits of things I never knew where there. I am half way between 'eww' and 'cool'.

It is fantastic that it picks up so much but where did it all come from???

I love a clean house...unfortunately my children seem to have decided that clean an 'the H' are never used in the same sentence describing each other. it is nice to have someone on my side even if it is a machine

ode to my breadmaker

How did I live without you? There is hardly a day that goes by that I do not use you. You create yummy and nourishing food for us to enjoy while making the house smell delicious.

Even in my extreme laziness I can find the energy to measure the ingredients and press start. I am rewarded for my minor efforts with the warmth and aroma that you produced. My children have begun to love the smell and know that the bread it to be enjoyed and relished.

Thank you for providing me the ability to make wholesome wonderful food without yucky food names that cannot be pronounced or understood.

it is going to be a long winter

The leaves on the tree in my yard are all on the ground.. (the weather turned and much like me at the end of a day dropped everything to rest) the squirrels are burying nuts, the roses are covered in cones-we have had our first frost and flurries- the pumpkins are composting...autumn is here..and quickly leaving in favor of a colder season: Winter.

During the summer the kids get up eat dress and head outside to burn off energy. We frequently do not come back in until dinner favoring a picnic lunch at a park or a pool. Now that it is dark earlier and colder the previous strategy of energy burning is no longer so appropriate.

It is going to be a long winter cooped up with the kids. Already they are itching to get back to playing outside (not that I have an issue with this..but I get cold...fast)So it is going to be a long winter of 'please do not run in the house' 'please please use the bat outside' 'the kitty does not want to be carried' 'ali is not a horse'.

This is not to say I do not like winter. I love it. As soon as there is snow. To have cold weather without snow is pointless. But when there is snow I will be right out there with them sledding, skating, building snowmen, shoveling..they will beg me to come in. We are Midwestern-ers.

Guilty Pleasures

Everyone has them. I have more than a few. One I love is ER. I am devastated that this will be the final season of ER. I have watched it since the beginning-- it has made me laugh- made me cry...I have felt for the characters and had my fair share of crushes.

My mother and I did not get along all that well when I was in high school but one thing we could always do was make stove top popcorn and watch ER on Thursday nights. One constant in a very very unstable world.

This show going off the air is like losing a security blanket. There is no good way to describe it. There were so many emotionally intense moments on that show. The writers hit a lot of home runs tapping into human emotion (of course they did pretty crappy sometimes too). I am losing all of 'my' shows. First Friends, then Sex and the City, Alias, and now ER. I am not good at change.

When Dr. Greene died it was arguably the most emotional I have ever been watching TV. I still get teary about it.

The good things about this season? Carter comes back (holy hotness!), Benton comes back, as does Doug Ross (be still my beating heart).... I may just buy the seasons from amazon to help sate my ER cravings.

YES we DID

Obama is the president elect of the US. Wow. Wonderful. Thrilling.

I have never been so inspired by politic as I have been in this election. My family is politically motivated and we have always been involved in the democratic process- never have I seen so many people so motivated so involved. Apathy ending.

This must what my parents felt with Kennedy.

more later when I can think

Saving Grace

My children, My Princess. Princess saved me. A lot to bear for a 4 year old. She is amazing. No idea how to explain the wonder that G-d has brought into my life with her.

Princess took my life and changed my life and my heart and changed its direction. Seeing her for the first time was like putting on a pair of much needed glasses. It was like seeing things for the first time. I resisted...change has never come easy. Slowly I began changing. My heart my soul.. I learned the love of G-d. Having her brought me to G-d. Allowed me to start listening to the small voice. She helped me tear down walls that I had spent so much time putting up. Let me learn to love and be loved. She let me begin to see G-ds worrk in my heart.

So thank you for Princess. Thank you for her exuberance. For her effervescence. For her.

Baby Blue Eyes

Zoe Blue Eyes.

I love her eyes. They are huge expressive beautiful blue eyes. They smile when she is happy. It is like she can say everything she needs to with her eyes...without words.

Right now she is crawling around the living room getting up close and personal with the carpet...singing along to music.

Her eyes see the world and all its beauty and all its wonder with such amazement with such awe. I love watching her watch the world observing and learning.

From the day she was born and we locked eyes. We locked hearts too. My children are part of me. They are such blessings. I have learned so much from them.

They do not care if I feel fat or if any of it. Zoe still loves to crawl up on me and snuggle her head on my shoulder. She loves to look up at me from her perch in a sling and smile so big I forget what ever i was saying.