Bye Bye Watermelon

Once upon a time there was a little girl who loved watermelon.  She loved watermelon so much, that she would eat it for breakfast, lunch and dinner.  Her mommy would giver her watermelon, all cut up for her, in a little bowl. When she was done eating the watermelon, the little girl thought it was funny to throw the bowl on the ground.  Her mommy didn't think this was so funny, but the little girl couldn't help but enjoy the clatter-plunk sound the bowl made when it landed on the ground.  The little girl would always ask for watermelon whenever she saw it, and she got excited when she saw the special bowl mommy always put the watermelon in.  One day, the little girl's mommy was hurrying to set the table for dinner, and she pulled the bowl of watermelon out of the fridge and set it on the table.  The little girl saw the watermelon and started to get very excited, because, of course, she loved watermelon.  She thought that she might even be able to reach the bowl all by herself and get some watermelon, because she was very hungry.  And after all, she loved watermelon.  So the little girl reached for the watermelon while her mommy wasn't looking.  The little girl knew that mommy probably wouldn't let her get the watermelon before dinner, so she waited until mommy's back was turned.  Much to the little girl's delight, the watermelon bowl (known as a "batter bowl" by some), had a handle and so it was easy to grab.  The little girl pulled it toward her, but she hadn't anticipated how heavy it would be!!  The little girl realized very quickly that she would not be able to hold the bowl up, but it was too late.  The bowl was already falling.  What the little girl did not understand, was that the bowl was made of glass and so when the bowl went CRASH, it also shattered and little pieces of glass went everywhere.  The little girl's mommy heard the crash, turned around at once, realized what had happened and ran to save the little girl.  Just before her mommy reached her, the little girl moved one foot, and, "ouch!!" The glass gave her a small cut in her toe!  Her mommy (who, very thankfully, was wearing shoes) grabbed the little girl and saved her from any more cuts.  Alas, it was too late to save the glass bowl or the watermelon.  Bye bye bowl, bye bye watermelon.  The little girl's mommy washed the glass off her legs and put a bandaid on her toe.  And while the little girl will probably not remember the broken bowl, her mommy will remember to be more careful about putting things within the little girl's reach!!

Growing and going

Little Miss is growing so fast.  It seems like I blink and she's taller and has learned how to do something new.  Her vocabulary has expanded to include: "daddy", "mama", "khhhh" (cat), "baby" (for her doll), "doggie" (which she uses all the time for several different things, although lately I'm wondering if it means "thank you"), "banana" (no seriously, she can say all 3 syllables), "ba" (ball), and "waaaaaahhhhhh!!!!!" which means, "I really want that right now!!!!"  Her new favorite pastime is playing in the toilet (blech), which she typically indulges in at other people's houses because we don't leave our bathroom doors or potties open.  Her current favorite foods include: lunch meat, tortillas, black beans, goldfish, grapes, and bananas (or any kind of fruit, really).  She does not care for string cheese or anything bready, not even pizza!  I sometimes wonder if the pizza gene is simply dysfunctional at the moment because it's impossible she didn't inherit it.  She is so much fun to play with because she is so happy all of the time!  Today I was taking a bunch of pictures and she caught me peeking at her from the floor around the edge of the sofa.

What are you doing mama??

You silly mama, are you taking pictures of me?

You ARE taking pictures of me!!

And here's a few more, also from today.

Goofy face

"Hey Lydia, go get the ball!" (We play this game a lot at our house.)

Mommy is "reading" the book in a silly voice.  I say "reading", because mommy has the book memorized ...

Favorite book :)

Strawberries and Storytime

Last week a friend of mine invited me to meet her at the library for Toddler Storytime, a half hour program complete with reading, fingerplays, and music/movement.  We got there a little late, but my friend had saved me a seat (on the floor of course) and I sat down cross-legged with Lydia in my lap while the stortyteller read the kids a book.  The funny thing about "toddler" storytime, is that the only people really paying attention to the book are the parents.  The "toddlers" are actually chattering and squawking, and several were running around on the stage behind the storyteller.  After the storyteller finished reading her story, we did a fingerplay where we laughed and clapped and spun around, and THEN we got to play with scarves.  Lydia was somewhat interested in the scarves, as I frequently play a game with her where I put some piece of cloth on her head and she has to pull it off.  She got so into the scarves that she pulled the scarf off the head of the woman sitting directly in front of us!  For Lydia though, the best part of storytime was running around with the other kids.  She just LOVES kids (and climbing), so she was in heaven watching all the other kids climb onto and run around the small stage area.

Right before storytime, I decided to attempt strawberry picking.  I figured it would be difficult with Lydia, but not impossible.  As it happened, my assessment was dead on.  I honestly could not remember the last time I went strawberry picking, so I don't know if this is true with all strawberry patches, but the strawberry patch we went to plants their strawberries in raised mounds (think Indian burial ground, only in rows), so it wasn't like you could easily go through the plants.  I was grateful for this, because I had visions of my dear daughter running willy nilly and stomping through neat little rows of strawberry plants.  She did run, but after giving her a little bit of a head start, I just set my bucket down and followed her down the path.  I usually caught her before she got into too much trouble.  She even picked a couple of strawberries and put them into the bucket!  I was mostly impressed (with myself) that she only managed to get ONE strawberry into her mouth.

Weight Watchers--First Impressions

Drum roll please ...

Three weeks ago, I joined Weight Watchers.  I suppose my journey to Weight Watchers started like any other good idea; first, someone I know and love did WW and had great success, then I went through years of putting on weight, bit by bit, losing some, then gaining it back, then I had a baby and put on more weight, then I made a goal which necessitated losing weight, then several of my friends around here joined Weight Watchers and finally, BAM, I took the plunge.  Going into it, I didn't know what to expect, other than learning a healthier lifestyle.  What I did know, was that I didn't have anything to lose but weight (and the monthly dues of course).  But what is a little money traded for a lifetime of health?  I decided that I would try it for one month, and if it just wasn't working for me, I would quit.  Imagine my surprise and my delight when I lost 8 pounds in my first week, then 3 more in the second week, and another 2 this past week.  All together I have lost 13 pounds in just 3 weeks (results not typical).  I'm sure that the first week included some of the effects from weaning Lydia, but all in all, WOW! I haven't been this weight since I first got pregnant.

I believe the keys to my success so far are three-fold.

First of all, the points system that Weight Watchers uses has really helped me to be able to better gauge what I am eating and how that translates into weight loss or gain.  If you don't know how Weight Watchers works, basically every food is assigned a point value.  Fruits and most vegetables (the unstarchy ones), are worth zero points.  Every person is assigned a daily points target (the lowest is 29 points), as well as an extra weekly points allowance of 49 points which expires at the end of the week.  You can also earn extra activity points which you can trade for more food points, if you want.  The program is very easy to use, you can input nutritional data into the computer or your mobile phone and it will keep track of everything for you.  The online tools have about a gazillion different foods already programmed in, and you can add your own recipes too and it will calculate the points for you.  I am so glad to have a better idea of the impact of the food I eat.  It has really helped me to cut back on foods that are higher in fat or simple sugars.  Before weight watchers, the only plan I had for losing weight was "eat less, exercise more," you know, the mantra of doctors and health nuts.  I never could figure out for myself, how to translate that into weight loss.

Secondly, I've discovered that accountability is key for me.  Now that I have to track everything I eat, you can bet I've cut down on my mindless snacking.  Also, there's the added incentive of "weighing-in" each week when I go to meetings.  It helps knowing that I'll have to account for my lapses, should there be any.

Lastly, Weight Watchers has freed me from food-related guilt.  I didn't realize how terrible my guilt was until it was gone.  I used to feel guilty about nearly everything I put into my mouth.  "Oh," I thought, "if only I could refrain from eating this I would lose weight ... oh well ..." *chomp chomp*.  The guilt was a huge obstacle for me.  Feeling guilty only made me more emotional, which made me eat more.  And I could never really overcome that guilt, until now.  Now I can eat WHATEVER I want, as long as I stay around my daily points target, and I can use my extra weekly points until they are gone.  I know the amount of points that I get is specifically designated for me, and I don't worry about it.  If I have "so" many points, I eat all my points, end of story, and I don't feel guilty about it or worry.

So there you have it.  Consider me an official fan of Weight Watchers.  If you know me, you know that I hope to lose a lot of weight, eventually.  It's going to take me a while and it's going to be hard.  I know there will be times when I will wonder what ever possessed me to join WW.  But for now, I'm content to be on  my Weight Watchers honeymoon, and just so grateful that I'm not 13 pounds heavier right now.

Egg hunts and Easter dresses

Nobody at our house got Easter baskets this year ... not really, anyway.  On Saturday we went to a friend's house for an Easter egg hunt, and the instructions were that we should bring 12 filled eggs per child to contribute to the hunt.  The dollar store had a decent assortment of candy, so I bought a couple of things, and snagged a basket for Lydia as well, so she would have something to collect the eggs in.  Since my daughter is very proficient at removing items from baskets, (I have a basket full of her shoes that sits by the front door--well, usually it's empty and her shoes are strewn all over the living room and placed on open shelves in the kitchen) I practiced with her for a few minutes before we left for the party.  I excitedly pointed out the eggs and she dutifully picked them up ... and proceeded to get very frustrated with me when I "helped" her put them into the basket.  Oh well, I thought, at least we should get some good pictures!  When it was actually time for the egg hunt, I (again in my excited voice) pointed out the nearest egg to Lydia.  She picked it up and I held out the basket for her to put it in.  Imagine my surprise when she actually dropped the egg into the basket!  I guess  that rehearsal helped after all!  We ended up with half a dozen eggs, all of which mommy or daddy pointed out, but ALL of which Lydia herself put into the basket.  As for the candy inside the eggs ... well, let's just say that mommy enjoyed it.

.....

Lydia's Easter dress!!! (And mommy and daddy too.)  As an aside, this was the only time all day she actually wore the hat that goes with the dress.

Busy Birthday

Today was Lydia's first birthday!  I cannot believe it's been a year since she was born, and at the same time, I feel like she's been a part of our family forever.  The last year has been an amazing adventure and I'm looking forward to many more years of fun!

For her birthday, we had a small party, just family and a couple of our close friends.  Lydia has started to get the hang of unwrapping presents, so that made present time a little more interesting.  She wasn't too sure about her cake, she really just picked at it.  I broke it apart for her and even gave her a fork, but she still didn't eat too much of it.  She doesn't much like mushy things, sweet or not, so maybe it was just the texture of it.  As an aside, if you take a regular cake mix, add a pudding mix, substitute applesauce in place of the oil, substitute half of the water with non-fat plain yogurt, and add a couple tablespoons of mayonnaise, you end up with a phenominally moist and delicious cake.

And now for the pictures.

A poster I made, highlighting Lydia's first year.

The cakes. Lydia's cake is the smaller one on the left.

Working with the fork.

She's not very good with a fork yet ...

Opening presents.

Lydia and her friend, inspecting a box containing a new scooter toy, courtesy of G-ma and G-pa.

To round out our Saturday, we went to ANOTHER party in the later afternoon.  Some friends of ours were having a hot dog roast/funnel cake party.  We got to see a lot of our friends from church and we had a great time.  We're so blessed to have such wonderful friends here.  This is unfortunately the only picture I got from this great party.  I say unfortunately, but it's still a cute picture  :)

General Conference!

I LOVE General Conference.  It is such a blessing to be able to listen to the words of living Prophets and Apostles broadcast from Salt Lake City every six months.  This year we went over to Ben's parents' house for 3 of the 4 sessions, and while I wasn't able to focus on every speaker (courtesy of Lydia), I was able to hear many inspiring talks by the leaders of our church and my heart is completely full.  I wish that everyone in the world would listen to these messages.  They truly speak of love and healing through the Atonement, which this world is in desperate need of.  There is far too little kindness and courtesy in our world today ...

I think my favorite talk (of those that I was actually able to focus on) came via Elder Christofferson.  He spoke about receiving "correction" from the Lord.  "For whom the Lord loveth, He chasteneth" as it were.  I've had friends who have said to me, "I'm a good person, why does all this junk happen to me?"  Personally I've experienced so much growth from opposition that it is hard for me to understand that kind of mentality, so I never really know what to say.  My favorite quote from Elder Christofferson's talk is: "Though it is often difficult to endure, truly, we ought to rejoice that God considers us worth the time and trouble to correct."  WOW!  The Lord allows difficult times and then helps us through it (if we seek Him), because he think's we're worth the time and trouble.  I think I always knew that but I would not have been able to say it so beautifully.

There were other stories and moments that touched me, but I'll have wait until the text of the talks comes out so I can read them and remember those "aha!" moments.

I didn't get any pictures this weekend, which is really too bad considering Lydia had a BLAST playing with her grandparents.  She hasn't gotten to spend much quality time with them lately.

Here are some pictures from our visit to the park on Friday, in lieu of pictures with grandparents.

A First, First Birthday Party

Instead of our normal playgroup yesterday, we had a combined birthday party for Lydia and one of her friends who turned 1 last week.  Lydia's birthday isn't for another 3 weeks, but she had a great time playing birthday girl a little bit early.  We ended up having 17 kids at the party.  Thank goodness I have a big backyard!!

Everyone camped out in the sunshine

An attempt at "Duck, duck, goose", although some of the kids were really too young to get all of the rules :)

Next we played a floating ducky game.  The kids had so much fun splashing in the water. In fact, I think this was the thing that Lydia enjoyed the most!

Piñata time!!  Everyone loves candy!

Playing with a friend and a balloon.

The ducky cake, made by a friend of ours who has quite a talent with cakes!

Lydia's cake

Lydia working on her cake, with a LOT of help from mommy.

So many friends!

Thoughts on being a stay-at-home mom

Things have been pretty quiet around here lately.  Lydia started getting sick last week and by Friday afternoon her cough was getting worse and I was just feeling like I should take her to the doctor.  The diagnosis: croup.  The pediatrician gave her some dexamethasone in the hopes that we wouldn't have to make a trip to the emergency room that night, and asked to see her again on Saturday.  She had a pretty decent night on Friday, and also Saturday, but she still wasn't doing too well and her fever wouldn't stay down without dosing her up with ibuprofen every 6 hours.  Sunday night was rough, and Monday night was worse, as she had a LOT of mucus draining from her.  She woke up coughing and gagging from it.  Both Monday morning and today I wiped brown crusty mucus off her eyes ... and after noticing more milky white discharge in her eyes this afternoon I put two and two together and called the doctor and took her in yet again.  Now she has pink eye and a double ear infection, poor girl, and she's on antibiotics for the duration.  I'm grateful that she's on the mend now and there's nowhere to go but full recovery!

It's an experience like this that makes me so grateful I am a stay-at-home mom.  I'm glad I can be here for my daughter when she needs me, take her to the doctor on demand, and I don't have to worry about who's taking care of her when she's sick since I wouldn't (or shouldn't) take her to daycare.  I also love that connection I feel with her since I spend every moment of every day with her, and I feel like I have a pretty good idea of what's wrong with her and how to help her.  Even though I worked in a daycare and the folks there work very hard to nurture and care for the children they serve, I truly don't understand parents who unnecessarily give their greatest treasures, their children, to other people to raise.  Being a stay-at-home mom may not be all that glamorous and outwardly profitable, but the intrinsic, unspoken value is immeasurable.

Lydia's favorite things

I've come to realize that getting to know your child's personality and watching them learn new things are the most enjoyable things about being a parent.  I get the biggest thrill out of seeing Lydia learn, grow, gain new skills and become her own little person.  I don't want to forget ANYTHING about my child growing up, so I've compiled a list of some of her favorite things/activities, currently, at nearly 11 months.

Lydia loves:

• Walking all over the house!  This is a recent accomplishment, as in the last couple of days.  She's been threatening to walk for what seems like forever, but for the past 3 days or so, she's really taken off and walks everywhere.
• Eating.  In fact, she loves it so much that she sings (humming, or mmmming) ALL through her meals.  I'm not exaggerating!  She LOVES food.  I'm don't remember the last time she spit anything out.
• Shaking her head and grinning when I say, "NO NO NO, Lydia!" (even when I'm being serious).
• Squirming instead of allowing me to change her diaper.  This becomes especially tedious when she's poopy, and I frequently end up wiping her bum while she's on her hands and knees. *Sigh* So far, the only way she'll stay still enough for me to put a diaper on is if she's sitting in front of the mirror on my dresser (where the changing pad is).
• Unplugging electrical cords and chewing on them.
• Trying to climb on the fireplace hearth, which is currently covered in pillows and couch cushions.
• Eating my Ensign.  I don't know why she always zeros in on that particular piece of literature, but I don't think any of my Ensigns from the last several months remain un-crumpled.
• Drinking her bathwater.  We keep two cups in the bathtub, one that holds about 8 oz. of water which we use for dumping water over her head and rinsing off shampoo, and the other, which would hold about 4 oz. of water, except it has a small hole in the bottom where the water drains out.  Lydia has actually become very proficient at drinking from a cup, and she will pick up whichever cup is available and begin to gulp bathwater unless we take it away.  I let her play with the small one, and even drink a little from it.  I figure, a little bathwater never hurt anyone!
• Pulling things off my open shelves in the kitchen.
• Dancing or waving her arms to music, wherever it may be coming from.
• Chewing on my phone, if she can get a hold of it.
• Pulling every single bow out of her hair.  Lydia's hair is getting long (down past her nose) and it really needs to be pinned back.  Not to mention, it's so cute pulled back!  But my child will almost always pull her bows out and chew on them.  I recently switched over to tiny elastic bands, the only problem being that instead of being able to pull those out (which she has only accomplished twice, I think) she ends up pulling so insistently, that she breaks off some of the hair and has short patches around the ponytail.
• Eating paper, or used tissues.  If it's a paper bi-product, it's tasty and fair game!
• Helping (un)load the dishwasher.  Doesn't every kid?
• Tormenting (that is to say playing with) the cat! ("kkkkkhhhh" as she calls her)
• Saying "mamamamama" and entwining her fingers in my hair when I pick her up.
• Squealing "dada" when daddy comes into the room.
• Pointing out the picture of Jesus on the mantel.

I LOVE my daughter.  I'm so grateful that Heavenly Father sent her to our family so I could be her mom.  Truly, being a mom is the best job I've ever had.

Picture Time!

It's been a while since I've taken some good pictures.  My hubby dropped my camera and it hasn't been right ever since.  We bought a new camera this week, so I've been having fun learning how to use it.

Hanging out at playgroup

Driving the car--oh so serious!

She loved it when I pushed her around in this car.

Crazy face--climbing over daddy!

 She's supposed to be playing with daddy and the bucket, but instead she sees the camera ...

 More climbing on daddy

 Crazy hair!!

Snuggling with mama, but looking at daddy instead of the camera.

A trip to the dentist

A few weeks ago, I realized that it was time for me to visit the dentist.  I hadn't been to the dentist in over 5 years, but I was starting to feel some sensitivity in some of my upper teeth so I set about figuring out where to go and how much it would cost.  We don't have dental insurance, so I checked out the possibility of buying a membership in a dental discount program.  Initially, looking at the percentage of some of the discounts, I was sure the thing was a hoax.  Some of the discounts were around 50% off the regular charges!!  But after calling one of the dentists that participates in the program, I discovered to my delight, that it was the real deal.  I had already looked into purchasing private dental insurance, but most of the private dental insurance I found had waiting periods for any dental work, and the co-pays for the procedures I was envisioning I needed were exactly the same as the discounted cost through the dental discount program.  I picked one of the dentists that was on the list and since this dentist had a couple of good reviews online and she was right down the street, I figured it would be a good match.  Inwardly I was terrified of what she might say, but I was prepared for the worst.  Luckily, it wasn't nearly as bad as I was envisioning, and as a bonus, the dentist was really gentle and kind.  Instead of the multitude of root canals and crowns I was CERTAIN I needed, I just needed 4 fillings, one of those a filling replacement in a molar on my upper right side, and the rest in between my teeth on the same upper right side.  Even though it took quite a long time, I had all those fillings done in the same visit, and at about 50% of the regular cost.  Now that I've chosen a dentist, and learned about the value of dental discount programs, you can be sure I won't wait another 5 years before returning to the dentist!

Trying to slow it down

Could life be any busier? I often wonder that as Lydia gets bigger, moves around more and demands more of my energy.  Sometimes I look at my life and I wonder what I am actually accomplishing right now.  It seems like my house is perpetually a mess, dinner is never ready before 6:30, and I struggle to remember to contact my VT sisters from church, prepare sharing time, and work out what the choir is going to sing and when.  I've realized that I really just have to prioritize my life right now or the important things won't get done.  Of course, prioritizing without perspective is the same as going backwards.  The most important thing right now is my daughter, and sometimes it takes all my time and energy to feed, play with, clothe, diaper and keep her clean.  Despite this, I couldn't be happier, even though my dirty house nags at me and my guilt over missing other details can be difficult to manage.  I'm just so grateful to be a mom and to have the chance to nurture my beautiful daughter.