Tag: Kids


Dec
2012

Pinned That, Did That. Sort of.

categories: at home, cooking, crafty, erin is ..., mommy

I love trying out new sites, gadgets, apps, etc. Love it. I jumped on the Pinterest bandwagon early on, and it’s been more useful than I thought it would be. Many meals, some clothes, knitting projects, room design, etc. have come from that wonderful Internet crowdsourcing.

Christmas seems like practically the main reason Pinterest exists. I mean, decorations, food to make, craft projects to aspire to and never actually complete, plus lots of starved half-naked women to motivate you to put down the Christmas cookies (or drink another winter sangria). (Seriously. Stop with the creepy/skanky “motivational” fitness pictures. That’s not what healthy looks like.)

So yes, I’ve done my share of pinning in the hopes of making spirits bright this holiday season. I don’t know if it’s nesting or what, but I’ve had wild hairs you know where to actually attempt some of them.

Exhibit A: Snowmen sandwiches.

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I like making fun shapes with cookie cutters, but I am definitely not up to bento competencies. I just admire from afar in the “You actually MADE lunch?!” seats. So this was a big deal for me!

Exhibit B: tomorrow our office is having a cookie exchange. My original plans waffled between pillsbury slice and bake cookies or faking labor to just not bother (but maybe also get a sympathy cookie. Shh.). Then, at supper tonight, I got inspired to make these:

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That’s right: marshmallow reindeer pops. They aren’t as perfect or perky as the original pinspiration (yeah, the lingo does get annoying), but they’ll do. Of course, then we have …

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Exhibit C: the also-rans from the reindeer pops beauty contest. Pins tell the happy successes and usually gloss over the “omg … why did I ever start this project ?!” moments. This project was fun and cute and all, but definitely not one I’d do when my kids are awake and wanting to help!

They will, however, enjoy the imperfect reindeer just as much as the pretty ones when they get a special snack after their (likely not to be pinned) lunch tomorrow. So lesson learned, Mom: keep it light and if you’re not enjoying it, quit pinning it.

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Dec
2012

Random round-up

categories: awake, rambling

It’s been a random sort of day. Most of my regular meetings were cancelled or shortened because of the pre-holiday wind-down at work. I decided it’d be a good day for dropping off the kids at preschool myself instead of them going with my mom. (She teaches there.) The kids, in turn, decided they should each bring a puppy toy to school. No, I have no idea why either.

This December (all four days of it) has been one of the warmest on record. Totally unfair, in my opinion. If I’m going to have a “winter” baby, I want some winter for this last overheated part of pregnancy. Rude.

So I wore a skirt today and sandals, hoping to stay cool. It’s been in the 80s and sunshiny all week, so I felt proud of myself for planning ahead. (You see where this is going, right?) Mid-morning, the sprinkles start. Then the downpour. Then the spotty clouds, then the “large thunderstorm system” spends the rest of the day hanging out, making it dark and cool, making my shoes squish because of course I need to go out in it. I do appreciate the cooler weather, though.

Granite countertops today! My husband sent a picture that’s in decent lighting, and I think they’ll be great. Yes, I decided from a sample. I haven’t seen them in person yet (reference “large thunderstorm system” above), so I do have a small fear that our kitchen will look like an ice cream parlor. Oh well. Worse things could happen, right?

Our daughter (2) has taken to daily rearranging the nativity scene. Today’s arrangement makes it look like the shepherds and animals are either on guard for the holy family or baby Jesus has stinky pants. I’m not sure which one Nora was more likely to have in mind …

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Jan
2012

Nora at 18 months

categories: erin is ..., family, mommy

One of the things I’m trying to be better at (in addition to blogging at all) is writing down the memories and updates about Seth and Nora. I whirl through the every day of parenting and work and marriage thinking, “There’s no way I’ll forget this!” but I forget all the time. When Nora was born, Will kept reminding me of all the things that Seth did at that age, and I really didn’t remember a lot of them. Some of that may have been due to evacuating for a hurricane with a newborn, but the rest is due to mommy memory lapse.

So here’s a Nora update.

Nora is 18 months now, and she is a tiny little spitfire. She is – no kidding – in the 2nd percentile for weight at a whopping 20 pounds. She’s in the 25th for height, though (31 inches). She is incredibly sweet but balances that with a ferocious temper (don’t know where she gets it). When she gets mad, she leads with her teeth and a battle cry.

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I know every mom says this about her child, but Nora is SMART. She has been making phrases for a couple of months, she understands English and French perfectly (except for when she doesn’t want to) and she loves putting on and taking off her socks and shoes. I’m surprised at how well she does it, honestly.

Seth is my musician and singer, and Nora is our dancer (so far). She loves to move with music and rocks out in her car seat a lot. It’s hilarious to see her boogying from side to side with a fast song.

She is a charmer, a flirt, and a clown. She loves kitties and books. She is just perfect. 🙂

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