This is predominantly what is probably best described as a 'Mommy Blog', but there may be other random musings that you just might find vaguely entertaining...
Kieradyn loves being in front of the camera so much that I've decided to submit her photo to the CuteKid Contest this month. Each picture that is submitted for the contest is $19.95, and since I'm not made of money, I want to pick her very best one. We did a little mini-photo shoot yesterday at my grandma's house, just for fun. There are really good ones, but they're all so different! It doesn't help that I'm naturally terrible at making decisions. (Seriously, a run for milk and diapers can take me two hours while I debate over which would be the better deal...)
So, I've decided I'd post them here first and use the nifty poll feature blogger provides.
Whaddaya think? Are you willing to help me out?
Thanks!
The Photos:
READY FOR MY CLOSE UP
ATTITUDE
FINDING DANDELIONS
IN THE FRESH CUT GRASS
The poll is listed at the top of the column on the right!
Yesterday, I decided that I wanted to go out and do something. My husband was off work, so it somehow became a "Girl's Afternoon" when he suggested that he keep Baby Gideon while I took Kieradyn. Last summer, we discovered this delightful place called Stapp's Circle S Ranch in Greensburg, Indiana, which is about half an hour or so from where we live. This is a place where you can get up close and personal with everything from donkeys and sheep to bears and capuchin monkeys. The place had made a pretty big impression on all of us. (I even volunteered there some last summer and hope to continue that this year.)
Ever since, Kieradyn has been asking whether "Lyde the Amel"--which is how she refers to her favorite resident of the ranch, the show stealing Clyde the Camel--when she is particularly excited, is awake yet. Basically, when the weather started getting too cold to go, we told her that the animals all had to go sleep in the big barn until it got nice out again.
Without checking the weather, I called over to the ranch to see if they had opened back up yet. "Well, we are so far..." was the tentative (in retrospect) response that I received. It wasn't until I stepped outside that I saw that what had been partly cloudy earlier in the day had transformed into clouds so dark that it was amazing that I wasn't being pelted with rain.
I had made a promise, though, and By God, I wasn't going to break it if I could help it. So, Kieradyn and I got into our red chevy venture to try to beat the rain to the ranch.
About halfway there, there was a smattering of raindrops on the windshield but not quite enough yet that I had to turn on the windshield wipers. From the backseat, Kieradyn calls up to me, "Mommy, it's gonna rain too much. Take me to Chuck E. Cheese's house." I hadn't notice until that moment how often a trip to the home of that big rat had become 'Plan B'.
That realization must have had me a little crazed by this point because I pressed on. "Clyde's waiting on us, Kier-Kier. Its just a little rain." I muttered, trying to peer through the raindrops that were still slowly accumulating. "A little water's not gonna hurt us. Besides, we've got jackets with hoods and everything."
"Ohhh..." Came my three year old's voice from behind me.
I kept on driving until I reached the ranch, but when I tried to turn in, I found that the driveway was blocked off by the gate. They were closed.
Bummed, I tried to explain to my three year old why I'd gotten her hopes up.
"I'm so MAD!" I glanced in the rear view mirror long enough to see her furious pouting.
"There's always..." Here I grimaced, feeling quite sheepish over the whole ordeal. "Chuck E. Cheese."
And I kid you not, it was at that exact moment that the skies finally opened up and the rain started really pouring down. Needless to say, I drove my daughter all the way back to our hometown so that she could play at the kiddie franchise. I mean, what else could I do?
I'm just glad that she has yet to learn the phrase, "I told you so"!
I'm going to take a moment to shamelessly plug my second blog. You can find it here: Much Ado, More to Say
It is a humble start, but I'm proud of it. I hope you like it and will be kind enough to follow it as you have with this little blog of mine. I'll be glad to return the favor for any friends you send my way too.
I'm hoping to have a third blog eventually, inspired by the lovely SquirrelQueen and her writings. (If you haven't already, you should really check out her blogs!) I've got some old short stories that I would love to dig up and edit to share with folks too.
I hope this finds everyone doing well. I appreciate you taking the time to read this and (hopefully) my new blog as well.
Let me know what you think, My Dearies. I absolutely LOVE feedback.
My sister called me up the other night. Now, with her being eighteen with a boyfriend, a job, and an impending high school graduation, she is usually too busy to spare time for her big sister these days. So, it is pretty rare that she calls me just out of the blue. I get a little bummed about it, but I'm glad that she seems to be happy. (You should see the boyfriend in question. The guy has dimples that would make any girl melt!)
Anyway, so she called the other night, telling me right off, "You are going to celebrate Mother's Day on Saturday. Mamaw (We were more or less raised by our grandparents, God bless them.) and I are going to each take one of the kids so that you can go out and do whatever you want for a few hours."
As you can imagine, with a very active three year old and a new baby, the hubby and I haven't gotten much time to do anything together but eat and sleep. So, this was a very endearing offer. In fact, I went to sleep last night all sorts of excited.
I woke up this morning just as excited as Kieradyn was. (She loves her Aunt Mindy, who doesn't mind spoiling her rotten with taking her places and buying her cute clothes.)I got the kids ready and pulled out the make up that has barely seen the light of day since Gideon came home. (All this despite my husband's chuckling. "We're going to a movie. It's going to be DARK..." Men.)
All in all, it was pretty nice. We saw the new Star Trek movie, which I would recommend to anyone who hasn't seen it yet. I'm not a die hard Star Trek fan or anything, but I genuinely enjoyed it. Then, when we went to pick up the kids, we were regaled with tales of what they'd done.
Kieradyn had a busy day of swimsuit and purse shopping, followed up by a visit to the KidsCommons-- home of the giant toilet slide once featured by Jay Leno. ( http://www.kidscommons.org )
It was a nice break from what's become our usual routine. In case I don't get around to posting tomorrow, I hope that all of you other moms have a great Mother's Day!
P.S. Baby Gideon rolled over for the first time today. Now he won't stop! He gets a huge grin whenever we make a big deal out of it and cheer him on.
I was sitting down last night with my husband, reflecting on some of the cute things Kieradyn has come up with since learning to talk.
One of our favorites occurred last summer when we traveled from Indiana to Iowa for my brother-in-law's wedding. When first crossing the Mississippi, my husband tried to get her to say the name of The Big River to little success. A little while later, when she caught sight of it again, the then two year old looked at me quite earnestly. "Mommy, Daddy says that's for-my-sippy (cup)."
Often, I find myself wondering why we ever taught the girl to talk--especially since she's started into the talking back phase! Little moments like that, though, make it all worthwhile.
I just was taking a glance over what I wrote yesterday and realized that, for some reason, the link for Sleeping Baby Productions wasn't there. (I hate being a newbie and having to stretch my already weak Html skills...)
I just wanted to take a minute to write about a product that I ordered recently online. Sleeping Baby Productions provides slings for "baby wearing". They are made by Jan, a stay-at-home mother, who has been using them herself since her first child was born 9 years ago. The site is awesome, containing resources for helping you get comfortable with wearing a baby sling in addition to the products. If it is possible to feel "at home" browsing a website, that is the way I feel about visiting SBP. Not only does Jan make the slings to sell, but she has a pattern of her slings posted on the site so that, technically, you can just make your own. (Please read what she has to say about this carefully though.)
Of course, you'd be pretty hard pressed to find better prices. You can spend as little as $22 or you can get one of the fancy dupioni silk ones for $80. There are slings at every price in between too. Plus, Jan does custom orders.
I was fairly strapped for cash, but I ordered one of her basic $25 slings for myself and one for my friend, Jessica, who is expecting her first baby in June.
I've worn slings before with my daughter, Kieradyn, but Jan has perfected a pleated shoulder that makes the sling more versatile than most and very comfortable. (I'm left handed and have had trouble with slings being fashioned with the typical right handed person in mind.)The fabric spreads across the shoulder and back, and I have always loved how ring slings are highly adjustable, which makes it more comfortable for mom and baby. The long tail makes a great covering for breast-feeding mom's too.
If you are unfamiliar with ring slings, don't worry. Jan does an excellent job of introducing you to slings and baby wearing. From the construction of a sling to all of the different ways to "wear your baby", she's got ya well covered.
Plus, there are some great accessories. I hope to order my daughter a little sling for her dolls soon, and I'll probably get one of the snap on pouches to carry things like my car keys and phone while I'm out and about with the kids.
So, if anyone who is interested happens to stumble across my humble blog, I hope you'll check out Sleeping Baby Productions here: There's even free shipping through the month of May!
((Note: I have not been solicited to do this. I mean, what would be the point? I don't even have a single follower for my blog at this point. I just really enjoy the product.))
Okay. I started this thing with the best of intentions, but I fell behind. Life caught up with me in a big way and gave me a swift kick in the butt. The good news is that my son, Gideon, was born on February 17, 2009. The bad news is that he has been in the hospital for everything from dehydration (my body wasn't producing enough milk for him) to RSV. (The doctor thinks he probably caught it during his hospital stay for the dehydration.)
Throw in a birthday party for the big sister and a more recent visit to the ER because that same big sister decided to unbuckle Baby from the swing and pull it back to give him a big PUSH and you've got a very frazzled Mommy.
I tell ya... This stay-at-home thing isn't half so easy as it sounded!
Still, I really do like it. The good times (almost always) make up for the super crazy ones, and being there for the milestones in both of their lives makes me feel like I'm doing something right.
