Tuesday, July 28, 2009

Summer Days

The 2 big kids are home from camp. The weather has been beautiful these last 2 days. There is nothing better than some sunshine and playing.

Wednesday, July 22, 2009

Monday, July 20, 2009

The dinner that they ate...

My kids have never been co-operative eaters. From the day I first gave N her first spoonful of rice cereal, she knew that mealtime just wasn't her thing. The boys both can be good eaters when they want to be, but they tend to never want what is offered at a meal. I have learned to not worry if they don't eat at every meal - average off the week and hope for the best.

Tonight was special.

I decided to make falafel with all the salads cut up, and let them take for themselves. I didn't expect it to work. There were magic forces present this evening though, and all 3 of my
children were well fed and happy!

What a gift!

Sunday, July 19, 2009

Sick Kid. Tired parents.

Nothing is as sad a little kid who is so sick that they don't want to move, mutter in their sleep, and have a high fever. It's been a long weekend with very little sleep. But he seems to have turned the corner. He's fully back to making his brother and sister crazy. Thank G-d.

Wednesday, July 15, 2009

No. I'm not. But thanks for asking.

I have a reverse body image problem. I was always the skinny kid growing up, and I sorta still see myself that way. After 3 kids, not much excercise, and no good eating habits, I'm not so much the skinny kid anymore. In no way am I fat, per se, but I'm definitely on the upper end of a healthy body weight for my height.
It's funny how G-d works though. I think it's a cosmic joke (a very bad joke) that I gain my weight in a way that makes me look like a cute pregnant person. Not fat-pregnant, but "oh, I have a fun little baby-belly" kinda pregnant. Which would, of course be fun and cute if I WAS pregnant. But I'm not. I just always look this way.

I also think that I must make people very comfortable, because a week does not go by (and this is by no means an exaggeration) where SOMEBODY does not ask me when I'm due. I'm not. I'm fat. You're not the first to ask me. I hear it all the time. Don't be embarassed. Stop apologizing. STOP ASKING!

Rule #1 of life - DO NOT ASK A WOMAN IF SHE IS PREGNANT UNLESS A BABY IS EMERGING FROM HER BODY AT THAT VERY MOMENT! There are very few ammendments to this rule. If she wanted you to know, she would have told you. If you didn't hear it from her or someone close to her, assume she's just getting fat and keep it to yourself.

I'm only venting because I hear it ALL THE TIME and it's tiring me out. I don't feel good about it, but I have no energy to change it at the moment. I always want to, but I haven't found the solution that works for me.

And yes, Nutella is not a diet food. I know.

Monday, July 13, 2009

Playing in the Park

I took little z to the park this morning. He had a great time going up and down the ladders and slides. Across the bridges and looking through the periscope. I felt amazing because: a) it was not pouring rain and he was able to be outside this morning for a bit and b) I had the patience to let him play without feeling like I had to rush home to work.

Then I looked around.

The park is filled with lululemon-wearing moms who ran to the park for their morning jog with their kids in the stroller, giving their kids healthy snacks (that they had the fore-sight to pack) while their seemingly perfect children obeyed everything their moms told them to do. And I just kept reminding myself that a snapshot like this of other peoples' days does not reflect reality (right?). And that I would not give in to the fight that will inevitably ensue later when little z tries to convince me that 5 honey cookies (5 is his favourite quantity when it comes to anything edible) are just the right morning snack for him.

I guess if he drinks a cup of milk with them...

Wednesday, July 8, 2009

Summer Camp Hell

I was never a lover of the summer camp thing.
I tried day camp. I tried sleep-away camp. I was a home-body.
So why have I become the parent that insists that my kids go to camp?
My eldest needs the social interaction. She doesn't want it, but she needs it. Mr. Middle LOVES everything about it (he gets that from his dad). Little Z is still in day care so we don't need to deal with this for him for a couple of years yet.
N. (eldest) feels that she is done with camp for the summer. 2 weeks was enough for her and she's ready to spend the rest of her 8 year old summer relaxing. I think she should get a job. Child labour never hurt anyone, right?
A big part of me just wants to keep them home with me, only to avoid the rush of the morning. It's the summer. The livin' should be easy and the schedule should be non-existant.
I also know that if they were home with me, I would not be writing this. I would be questioning my sanity at ever having considered keeping them home. They would spend too much time in front of electronic devices and not enough enjoying outside/swimming/friends.
I think I need a double. One to get work done and one to play with the kids.
I guess I better start planning activities...

Tuesday, July 7, 2009

Coffee and Kids

So, I am that parent that other parents look at and whisper about. They see me with my children and they are critical of me. Not all the time. But yesterday was one of those times. How do I know? My MIL told me. (Thank G-d for MILs!)
Yesterday, I took my Beautiful Girl (almost 8 yrs old) to run a bunch of errands and then we were going to go out for Tea. Since we live in North America, this meant that we were going to a coffee shop. Before we went in, she asked if she could have an iced coffee instead of tea. Basically, she wanted the slushie version of java. Since you can't get this without caffeine, I was hesitant. Then she tells me, "Make sure mine is decaf". I love this girl! I told her that I would get one and she could have a bit of mine, but I wouldn't let her have her own -- too much caffeine. Anyway, the machine wasn't working so we had plain-ol' decaf iced coffees. I felt happy that the caffeine thing became a non-issue.
During my MILs regular suppertime phone call, she tells me a scandalous story about a mom and a little girl that she saw, and the little girl was *SHOCK* drinking an iced-coffee! Could you believe it! How irresponsible of the mom! Caffeine at such a young age!!! Quick - Call child services!!!
LESSON LEARNED: Mom, don't assume that things are what they look like. And I will do my part by making sure that I only let my BG have iced coffee when she is in a foreign country!

Time flies

Did you ever have a day when something on your schedule gets cancelled, it frees you up (which you are excited about) and then the free time passes without you having accomplished anything?

Welcome to my day!

Monday, July 6, 2009

A day with my Beautiful Girl

Today has been an exceptional day, so far (I haven't hit pick-up time with Little Z, which is usually where the day goes downhill). I kept N home from camp today because she had an appointment to be a fit model at this very beautiful children's clothing company. She's done it before and she loves just trying on all the gorgeous, phenomenally high-quality outfits. After the appointment, we went to do some stuff together -- we picked up an activity book at the dollar store, we stopped in at Old Navy to get some camp/school stuff (huge sale happening!), and we went out for "coffee". Without being pulled in a million directions, I was so happy to know that I DO have some patience left in me. I wasn't constantly yelling at her, as I usually am. And I can really see that she is a beautiful person, inside and out. She is as considerate as an 8 year old can be. She is not tremendously independant or interested in a lot of pop-culture (I had suggested going to a magazine store and getting her a magazine, she was the one who wanted to get a puzzle book from the dollar store!), but she is easygoing and willing to come along without complaining. She is truly happy just spending time with me, and the only thing that she vetoed was going to a movie (she has a thing against movie theaters and I don't know why).
Today was a great day, both because of the company, and because I learned that I can be the parent that I originally thought I would be. It seems to work best one kid at a time, but we must remember - baby steps. I think I need to do this Mommy-day thing with the boys too...

Sunday, July 5, 2009

Cuddle Kids

When my first child was born, a friend of mine came up with a nickname for both our babies -- they were Cuddle Bunnies. The name kinda stuck. I've never been the type for calling people by lovey-names (Honey, Darling, Shnookums... the names never really did it for me). I figure, if you can't call someone by their name, it's a sign that you have a very bad memory and don't want to risk mistakenly using the wrong monaker -- not so good.
But Cuddle Bunny actually stuck. I knew I would never forget my daughter's name. She's named after my grandmother, an amazing and strong woman. No, I would never forget.
Along came monkey #2 and I caught myself referring to him as a Cuddle Bunny too! For shame! That was monkey #1's name. Since #2 was so huggy and delicious, I decided he would be my Cuddle Bear - he gave the greatest little bear hugs!
When #3 came along, I didn't make the same mistake. I watched his personality and it became clear very quickly that the Cuddle Monkey had officially arrived! He even makes monkey noises and will correct me if I ever make the mistake of calling him a different nickname -- Mister Bum, Stinker, Little Z. I think the personalities get stronger with each passing Cuddler.

My Monkeys

So, I chose to start this blog so I have a place to celebrate, vent and think out loud about all the random stuff that happens in my life. I have an amazing husband and three beautiful children whose ultimate job seems to be to try and see how long it will take me to lose my mind. They are actually amazing little people who I am grateful to have in my life. I just keep reminding myself that the behaviours that make me craziest will serve them well in later life (I would just rather they didn't use them on me!).
I look forward to hearing back from you with stories about your own kids that make you laugh or scream. It helps us all feel a bit more normal to know that we're not alone out there as we go through this parenting thing.