Confessions of a Bibliophile

07:13 pm - Oh Joe...

"Joseph Henry! Don't throw food on the floor."

"I'm not."

"I just saw you do it."

"I didn't throw food on the floor."

"Then who did?"

"My hand did it. He's a bad boy."

The kid has a future as an attorney.

09:21 am - Hatchet Job

Sometimes it pays to go "cheap". Other times...

On Tuesday, I took Joseph to Supercuts to get his hair trimmed. The child's red locks were unruly and out of control - and not in a cute way. I've been feeling that postpartum "blah" which can only resolve itself by either a) losing fifty pounds in two days or b) getting a new hair cut. Since former is highly unlikely - did you see the banana bread recipe? - I decided to go for the latter.

If I were a more patient person, I would have just made an appointment with a salon and left it at that. Instead, in a burst of "if I don't do this now, I'll take the kitchen shears to my head" energy, I sat down in a chair next to Joseph at Supercuts.

Fifteen minutes later, I looked in the mirror at a hack job. I had asked for long bangs and some layers. It looked like I'd allowed Joseph to cut my hair. With safety scissors. The layers were abrupt and uneven. The bangs weren't bangs at all.

Now, I'm not one of those gals that has an emotional attachment to my hair. For years, a dear friend was my stylist and I enjoyed her experimentation. Dye it burgundy? Why not? Chop off twelve inches? Go for it! Bleach it blonde? What can it hurt? But this. This was not good.

For the first time in my life, I wanted to put a paper bag over my head. I had asked for enough length to wear a ponytail, not for hair that was required to be in one.

I immediately put out the call to find a stylist that could fix this mess. Thankfully, I found one in town. She was inexpensive and available. After a 45 minute appointment, the damage had been repaired without resorting to a buzz cut.

I still need the bangs to be a bit shorter. I've decided I'm not they type of girl who can brush her bangs away from her eyes in a casual, sexy motion. Maybe when I was in my 20's I could have pulled that off. Now I just look frantic. In the meantime...

Lesson learned. For some things....don't pinch pennies.

07:11 pm

I have no excuses as to why I'm already a week late for Elizabeth's three month post. None. Well, except I have a three-month-old baby. And a three-year-old big brother. Besides that, no excuses!

Little Elizabeth is growing by leaps and bounds. She's in 3-6 month clothing and, I have to say, is looking cuter and cuter every day. We were walking in grocery store yesterday, she in her baby pink polar fleece, with the hood up, and I was struck by how absolutely beautiful she is. Stunning, really. Her round, pink cheeks glow with health. Her bright blue eyes are so inquisitive. Her chubby little hands grasp and cling. Her toothless mouth seems to be caught in a wide smile.

She's still happy baby - in spite of her "moments". But honestly, sometimes a girl just has to put her foot down and let her displeasure be heard. And hear it, we do! Our little Leo roars!

She adores her big brother. I catch her watching him with a grin on her face while he dances around, talking a mile a minute. Every now and then, he'll look over at her and swoop in for a hug or a kiss. She'll grab at his hair, he'll cry out for help and, as I'm detaching strands of hair from her vise-like grasp, he'll look at me and smile, "She doesn't mean to pull my hair, Mommy. She just likes me."

She's discovered her hands and feet. She watches them move about with utter facination. She loves to hold on to anything that gets in her path. Most often, whatever she finds ends up in her mouth. So far, her favorite "toy" seems to be my canning jar rings. I gave her one to keep her busy when she was in the kitchen helping me cook one night. From that point on, the bright, plastic teething toys have been pushed aside. She'll look at her flower ring and toss it, eyes and hands greedily latching onto the bright metal rings instead. When she's not chewing on them, they end up as bracelets.
She's rolling from front to back and from her back to her side. She gets around too. The child can scootch across the floor using sheer leg power. I shudder to think how fast she's going to be once she's really mobile.

We're able to "tri-pod" sit her. Basically, if we spread her legs into a "V" and balance her just so with her arms resting on her thighs, she can maintain a sitting position for about two seconds before crumpling over. Right about now you're feeling very, very sorry for her, aren't you?

10:35 am - Hmmm

Why is it that if I were sitting at home right now, I'd be eagerly anticipating lunch with a snack under my belt, but when I'm at work...I'm eating a snack, not because I'm particularily hungry, but because I need the room in my lunch cooler for the bottle of milk I'm about to go pump?

Working, while detrimental to my new mommy mental state, could be the key to dieting success.

09:46 am - Sitting on my hands...

If I could access Facebook from work, my status would read...

Mandy is try very hard not to call her parents-in-law to check to see how they're doing with Elizabeth.  She realizes it's been less than two hours since she last called and doesn't want to annoy them.

I don't know if I'll make it much longer without calling to check in.

05:44 pm

Oh, wait.  That's me now.

Joseph started to display one of the Most Annoying Habits Ever.  Of course, said habit is usually used upon a hapless sibling, but considering Baby Sister isn't easily annoyed at the moment - unless you take away her milk - he decided to practice his evil machinations on me.

He's copying me.

Seriously.

"Joseph.  Put away your toys."

"Put away your toys."

"I'm serious, young man.  They're all over your floor."

"I'm serious, young man.  They're all over your floor."

Arrggghh!!!

01:00 pm - A conversation

"Hey Josie," I said while dishing up a bowl of mac and cheese, "how would you like to watch a meteor shower next week?"

"A meteor shower?!  I don't know if that's a good idea."

"Oh," I said stumped. "Why not?"

"I don't really want to go on a rocket ship to the moon."

"Well...I wasn't really thinking of going on a rocket ship.  I was planning on just laying on blankets in Boppa and G's yard."

"But we have to go on a rocket ship to see meteors," he replied patiently as if I were the child.  "And then we'd go to a planet and there would be giant aliens and scary robots."

"Really?"

"No, silly.  I was just kidding about the robots."

09:52 am - Hi ho, hi ho...

It's back to work I go. And I'm really sad.

I really shouldn't complain. I'm only back one day a week until after the first of the year. At the same time, it was so hard leaving Elizabeth this morning. I can't help but realize that this easing back to work is the first step to going back for real.

On the plus side, she's with her Aunt Rachel who will take very good care of her. I'm going to get to see her in 45 minutes when Rachel brings her by so I can nurse her. (This is a special Mommy's First Day at Work deal. From now on, I'll have to pump.)

Really, I shouldn't complain. I shouldn't be sad. I shouldn't be near tears.

I need to look at the bright side and realize that I'm back at a job I love with co-workers who are amazing and understanding.

But what I wouldn't give to win the lottery and be able to stay home full time and snuggle in bed with my babies every morning.

*sigh*

09:52 pm - Trick-or-Treating - Round One

We left Pacific Grove after a relaxing breakfast of toasted bagels, tea, orange juice and USA Today.  Oh.  And Dinosaur Train.

We arrived in Davis around 2:00.  In a whirl of activity we dressed Joseph in his costume, piled back into the car and headed to downtown Davis for an afternoon of trick-or-treating.
 

In less than an hour, his dragon feet started dragging and his dragon hands sweating.  He decided he'd had enough of this whole trick or treating business and took off the top part of his costume.  His t-shirt was stuck to his skin, his hair a sweaty jumble.  He asked for water and drank half a bottle in one guzzling swoop.
 

08:29 pm - Road Trip

This weekend marked Elizabeth's first road trip.  We started off early Thursday afternoon, heading north to Pacific Grove.  It was a gorgeous, crisp day...perfect for a little girl and her leg warmers and a little boy in his monster shirt.  We checked into our hotel and then ventured out to the beach.
 

Side note:  I don't know why, but it really bothers me when kids take starfish off their rocks.  I guess it's because they really have to work at it to pry them off and honestly, it seems...rude.  I don't have the same qualms about catching hermit crabs or pill bugs.  Maybe because they roam about?  Hmmm...
 

07:05 pm - Practice

It's fall on the Central Coast.  While the East Coast shows the change of the season with a spectacular display of turning maple and elm leaves, we show our autumn colors with vineyard harvests.
 

 

Kendra and I took Elizabeth on a cross county jaunt to photograph the rolling hills of red, yellow and orange.

We hit up a winery in the midst of harvest.  One one side of the road, the leaves had turned brilliant scarlet, yellow and orange.  Grapes that were left on the vine were shrivled into raisins, their wrinkled skin dull and dusty.

On the other side of the road, workers were walking the rows picking great bunches of grapes, filling box after box.  Long rows of barrels glowed golden in the sun, waiting to be filled.

After taking pictures, I chatted with the winery manager for a bit about the weather, upcoming frost, gardening and the four giant beasts roaming the grounds, masquarading as dogs.  One German shepard looks large.  Four is enough to make even the biggest dog lover take a second look.
 

 

We got back on the road to a winery that boasted a large open yard.  While I fed Elizabeth, Kendra wandered the property taking pictures.  After my little baby had a full belly, we plopped her down amongst the fallen leaves and took a few pictures.  You didn't think I could take the little elf along and not take pictures, did you?
 

 

We finished our afternoon with lunch and a walk around town.
 

 

Per usual, my mind pictures were much more vivid than the ones I captured with my camera.  But practice makes perfect, yes?  Besides, it was a wonderful way to fill a fall day.
 

 

Here are a few more photos...
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

03:03 pm - Chilly Weather...

The weather is (finally) starting to cool down.  Yesterday, Elizabeth was dressed in her normal house uniform of a onesie.  I added a pair of socks as a nod towards the lowering temperatures.  She was fine most of the day, but toward the evening, her legs started to get cool.  I put a pair of pants on her, but thought to myself, "What this girl needs is a pair of baby leg warmers."

A quick trip to the store proved that baby leg warmers are actually ridiculously expensive for what you're getting.

A quick search on the internet showed that I could make my own for a fraction of the cost with just a bit of sewing know-how and a pair of tube socks.

Thankfully, I have just a bit of sewing know-how.  And a pair of tube socks.

Ten minutes later...

 

05:04 pm

As I've mentioned before, Rachel is finally starting to develop her photography business. She's actually getting quite a few bookings, so we thought we'd take advantage of having a professional photographer in the family and get the kids' pictures done sooner rather than later.

Side note:  Now we just need a doctor, a lawyer and a rock star in the family.

Rachel and I couldn't decided where to have the photo shoot.  She wanted to try for a rustic look.  Something a little bit country.  After brainstorming for a half hour, I called Chad to see if he had any ideas.

"Go to my parents' place."

"That's not really rustic."

"The back of the property has a field, fences and a weathered shed."

"But...is it rustic?"

"I think it'll work."

It worked beautifully.  We don't often wander back into the corral.  We see it from the back yard and we walk past it to visit the neighbor's goats, but we never really walk in it.  It was perfect.  Green (from our recent rain storm) grass covered the slope behind the fences.  The fences themselves were weathered white boards.  The top of some had fallen down, which gave the pictures the perfect look.  Where once horses stabled, now there's a cast iron tub and tin buckets.  Perfect accessories.  We couldn't have found a better location.  In fact, now that I know what a treasure trove it is, we'll be going down there more often for photos.

She posted one of Joseph to her blog.  She's posted a few more to facebook.  I can't wait to see how the rest turn out. 
 

09:13 am

Sunday night, my gardening group met with our families to enjoy an end-of-the-season harvest dinner.  We made dishes with ingredients from our garden - or ingredients we wish we could have grown!  The food was amazing.  I have a sneaky suspicion that I've fallen in with some foodies.  From carmelized pecan and coconut topped sweet potatoes to pumpkin pie made from scratch - and by "from scratch" I mean, from an actual pumpkin - to creamy risotto, these women can cook! 

Erin and her husband hosted.  Their home sits on a hill with a view facing west and a long yard that narrows into a point.  We sat outside to eat our meal in candlelight while the kids ran around the yard, playing Mental Hospital Escapees or some such game, too excited to eat.  We chatted about babies, camping, cooking, canning and, of course, gardening. 

As the sun set, we gathered at the point to sit in chairs and enjoy a cozy fire. I passed Elizabeth off to Michelle and held Chad's hand.  Joseph and Lily played behind us, their voices breaking the quiet of the night.  Arabella, Remington and Ethan cuddled in their respective parents' arms as the conversation turned from tutus to photography to expressions of appreciation for such a nice evening.

From beginning to end, the dinner lasted a little over two hours.  But what a nice way to spend an autumn evening!

11:41 pm - The Great Costume Caper

Finding Halloween costumes for one child is fun.

Finding Halloween costumes for two children...not so much.

My Virgo mind wants the kids to coordinate.  If I'd had my way, I would have turned them into cute and dorky Raggedy Ann and Andy.  Sadly, with a strong willed three-year-old, this is one area where I don't get my way.

I tried talking Joseph into being a pirate (how cute would Elizabeth be as a baby pirate?), a cowboy, and a football player.

He wants to be a dragon.

I found his costume at Old Navy.  It's well made, warm and actually very cute.  But then the question arises...what should Elizabeth be?

Joseph suggested fire or a princess.  There's no way I'm dressing my adorable baby as fire for her first Halloween.  As for the princess idea...well...I figure that's what she's going to be for the next sixteen years and that I should pick something different while I still have a say.

I finally settled on a catepillar.  Cute, cuddly and, since I'll be carrying her in a peanut shell "cocoon", easy.  Sure...it doesn't "match" the dragon, but at least it'd be easy.  Right?

Wrong.

I can't find an inexpensive, small catepillar costume to save my life. I've looked in stores and online. I've even looked for patterns, to no avail.

So now, I'm in a bit of a dilemma.  Do I stick with the catepillar idea and try to sew one up without a pattern?  Or do I cave and dress her up as a princess.

Decisions, decisions.

And yes.  I do realize that if our biggest concern right now is Halloween costumes, we're doing pretty well.

11:40 pm - Pickin' Pumpkins...

Along with Ken and Sue, we drove out to a local pumpkin farm today to pick the perfect pumpkins for ghoulishly good times.
 

 

 had a fantastic time and came home with a mini pumpkin that Joseph insisted Elizabeth wanted, a small pumpkin that will be impossible to carve and a medium sized pumpkin that is perfect.  All in all, a good haul.
 

 

Side note: It looks as if we're exposing our little pumpkin to harmful UV rays.  Not to worry...she was wearing a hat until I took this picture.  We had to remove said hat in order to tell that there is a baby on Chad's chest.
 

 

 

 

 

 

11:39 pm - Tutu Cute

The kids have a photo shoot with Rachel on Monday.  Rachel suggested I make a tutu for Elizabeth to wear in some of her pictures.  Some ribbon, elastic, $2 worth of tulle and 30 minutes later, I've got a tutu for my pretty little princess.  The scale is hard to see, but honestly this thing is so sweet it makes my teeth hurt.  I tried it on Elizabeth and, with the tutu, she's almost as big around as she is long. 

 

11:38 pm - Ooops...

We're trying to watch our language around Joseph. We really are.  I'm not big on swearing in the first place, but we're really trying hard to tone it down.  We're not very successful.

Me:  Hey Joseph!  We need to get going, buddy.

Joseph:  Oh my God!  We're going to be late!

Me:  Gosh.  Oh my gosh.

-----------------

"I have a new friend," Joseph says causally while eating his snack.

"Really?"

"Yeah.  His name is Oh Damnit."

"What?!"

"Oh Damnit is a really cool guy."

"Chad!!!"

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11:45 pm - Joe Time

I adore going to the theater and watching movies.  I love the smell of popcorn, the flicker of the screen, the joy of sharing an experience with random strangers - laughing or crying at the whim of the director. 

The first movie I saw was ET.  I remember going to the drive in and watching with amazement as ET and Elliot flew across the moon.  I didn't go to another movie for a few years.  We lived in a rural area in the Ozarks and then moved to a rural area in Washington. 

Needless to say, when I moved to California, I became a regular at the theater.  From Spice World to Titanic to Amelie, I joined friends, family or went alone to be entertained by the big screen.  How sad that I married a man who prefers the comfort of his own home and DVD player!

But, you see, I'm raising a couple of partners in cinematic crime and I'm starting my influence early...

Yesterday, we called Boppa and G to see if they'd like to hang out with a little baby and then took Joseph to see his first movie in the theatre - Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs. 

The three of us got in the car, which confused Joseph.  "But what about baby sister?"

"She's staying at home today.  We're going to something special with just the three of us."

"Ohhh-kaaaay.  But we have an extra seat if she wants to come."

We drove downtown and walked to the theater.  We paid for our tickets and went into the lobby where Joseph's eyes widened at the sight of the candy displays.  We bought a snack pack (a little box with popcorn, candy and a drink) and a popcorn and water for Chad and I, then went into a theater that was already darkening.

Joseph sat on the edge of his seat, slowly eating popcorn, eyes glued to the screen as giant hot dogs and monsterous meatballs crashed into the small town of Chew and Swallow.  Chad and I looked at each other in the dim light and grinned.  It was one of those moments, as a parent, where it was truly more exciting  to experience it through the eyes of your child.

When it was over, Joseph turned to us and said, "That was the best movie ever.  I like the big TV."  Then he turned to the screen, "Goodbye!!"  He almost danced out of the theater talking about scenes from the movies and upcoming attractions. 

Sometimes it's hard to remember that he's only three.  He acts so much older.  At least four.  But Sunday evening as he walked down the sidewalk holding our hands and jumping over cracks, talking a mile a minute, I realized that this was one of those magical, fabulous moments that every parent treasures.  And I realized how important it was that we'd taken him out for a little Joseph time.  It's easy to get caught up in the day to day of Baby World.  It's easy to forget that there's a little boy in the house that still craves time alone with his parents.

Must get better at that.

In the meantime, there's a movie heading our way around Christmas that Joseph's already talking about.  And it's right up my alley.  Sci-fi.  Nice.

01:55 pm - Little Differences

On an intellectual level, I knew the kids would be different from each other, but it's been facinating to watch Elizabeth and actually see  the differences.

Joseph, our little Taurus, was as regular as clockwork.  He woke up every morning around 6:30 - still does, for that matter - and eat.  An hour later, he was ready for a nap.  He slept three hours, woke up and repeat.  We could plan out the rest of the day based on his wake up time.  Most of our friends and family assumed that Chad and I put him on this schedule.  We didn't!  We noticed a pattern around six weeks and started to anticipate his actions, making for a much calmer environment.

Elizabeth is more free flowing.  We tried to discover her sleep pattern and, when we looked at our log, couldn't see one for the life of us!  She wakes up around 5:30.  Chad brings her to bed with us where she gets an early morning breakfast and falls back to sleep until around 9:00.  After that...sometimes she naps for a couple hours, sometimes twenty mintues.  The only sure thing is that she's in bed between 7:30 and 8:30.  For the last two weeks - with two exceptions - she sleeps until 5:30.

I'm not going to complain.  At this age, Joseph was still waking up every three hours all through the night.

Joseph had a play mat.  He used it maybe a half dozen times but never got interested in the dangling toys.

Elizabeth, on the other hand, goes nuts when she's on her play mat.  She hits the brightly colored bumblebees and butterflies.  She looks at herself in the mirror and, realizes how beautiful she is, grins and coos at her reflection. 

Side note:  It cracks me up to watch her with mirrors.  She loks at the baby in the mirror and smiles.  Then, seeing the baby smile back at her, laughs.  Then, seeing the baby laugh, starts waving her arms frantically.

Joseph hated being swaddled.  He'd twist and squirm and kick until he freed himself.  Then, he'd finally relax and sleep.

Elizabeth needs to be swaddled like a duck needs water.  If she comes free, she cries in a pitiful, tired little voice until she's wrapped up tight as a burrito again.

When I snuggled next to Joseph to get him to sleep, he wouldn't budge as I slowly got up from the bed.

Elizabeth has a sixth sense about such things and will frown, squirm and start to wake up if I even shift slightly.

I can't wait to see how their personalities grow and develop.  It'll be amazing to look at them when they're older and see their similarities and differences.