A Night At The Circus

It seems to be an essential part of childhood....going to the circus.  Tonight was Laura's first time going and I think she lucked out with a great experience.  There were trick dogs, cats, birds, lions, and of course elephants.  There were acrobats and gymnasts, along with magicians and clowns.   The whole show was very well done, and she had a wonderful time.  Mommy thought she was going to lose it at one point over the absolute stupidity of the people who showed up 20 minutes late and stood in front of Laura for a good 5 minutes trying to figure out seating arrangements.  But aside from that it was a wonderful night and Laura was grinning ear to ear when we left.  I  believe the words "totally awesome" were uttered as we walked out (or should I say speed-walked out, because I am truly my father's daughter and would do just about anything to escape that awful crowd of people leaving).

I wasn't able to get many good pictures because it was so dark, but I do have a few of Laura before the fun started!

Laura waiting for the show to start. The kids were allowed to go down and check on the ring, which we did. Susie the elephant came out and did a trick or two, and then did some "art" with her foot. It was really cool!

Waiting so patiently in line for her popcorn.

Happy now that she had her snack!

My only photo of the circus in action.

Gone Fishin'

Poor Laura has strep throat for the third time since September!  After a busy weekend with Daddy and Grandma, her fever came back late last night, and she didn't get much sleep, so she stayed home from school today.  She accompanied Mommy to work for a few hours, and then did a little bit of fishing, from the somewhat relative warmth of the garage.  Look, she only needed snow boots, a jacket, and a scarf!  Temperatures in the mid-40's yielded no fish, although she did manage to hook a can of Pepsi, which she generously gave to me. 

In other news, yesterday was the 2nd anniversary of me acquiring my Volkswagen Tiguan, and I wanted to report that at 34,768 miles, she's still doing beautifully.  I love my little VW and I don't know why more people don't have them.  I finally got her a new Jack ball for her antennae (thanks Mom!)  This cute soccer Jack was mailed all the way from California and despite what appears to be a smile, he's not particularly enjoying the cold weather.  Don't worry little guy, soon you'll be sweating to death in the humidity and begging for winter again.

Check out my post from when I first got the Tiguan if you want to see a picture of how bad the old Jack ball looked.

Laura and I had a pretty hectic January, so here's to hoping that February will be a bit more mellow and maybe give us some more time for "fishing".

January Updates

Surprised to see me, aren't you? I know, I know, it's been forever since I've posted. I feel terrible about that, but as is the case for most people, life keeps getting in the way. I can't even begin to talk about everything that's happened since I stopped posting regularly, and I simply can't post all the pictures I've taken since the summer. I'll share a few January pictures, and hope that I'll get back into a more regular posting routine.

Laura enjoying our second snow of the winter...a bit out of the ordinary for our part of NC!

Moxie in the snow...crazy how much she loves it

As for me, I have red hair again.

Laura was recognized by the county school board as a "Shining Star" for having the kids that came to her birthday party bring books instead of presents, and then donating the books to her Kindergarten class. She was called up to the front of the meeting to receive her award...she was a little bit shy but did a great job!Laura and I after she got her award...I think she was done with smiling for pictures by this pointThe shirt I made for Laura for her 100th day of school

The back of the shirt

That's all for now...wish me luck as I attempt to wrestle my life into order and get back to blogging and running, two of my favorite things that have fallen by the wayside the last few months.  Oh, and yes, my background and blog name are totally different now....not sure if either of the changes will be permanent, but we'll see.  The background got lost by mistake (I accidentally deleted it and can't figure out how to get it back) and the old blog name needed revamping, and 3 Square was the best my non-creative brain could come up with.  It kind of applies, yet makes no sense at the same time, which is why I like it so much.  For now.

Kindergartner

I don't have time to write much today, but I wanted to share pictures from Laura's first day of Kindergarten! Laura goes to a year-round school and today was the big day. It truly is hard to believe she's old enough for Kindergarten. Our picture taking was a bit rushed this morning, and the sun was pretty bright, but we got a few relatively normal looking pictures. By this point she was desperate to get rid of me. Her "smile" says it all!

Along the same lines, I heard this song for the first time a few days ago and it really touched me. When I walked away from Laura's class this morning, I choked up a little bit, but I didn't cry. But when this song came on my iPod as I drove away from the school...yep, I totally cried.

Pink IS Her Favorite Color

I think everyone who knows Laura knows how much she loves pink-a lot of her clothes are pink, as is the paint color in her bedroom and bathroom. Her car seat, her jacket, her sheets-all pink. If she had her way, our car would be pink too. I just never thought she'd take her love of pink so far and get pink eye!

Her eye actually doesn't look too bad, and she says it doesn't itch too much, but the moment I saw her this morning, I knew. A quick trip to the doctor this morning confirmed it. The moment I saw her eye, all sorts of thoughts raced through my head. I thought about the fact that I'd have to skip work today, which is never good when you're a brand new employee and have a big "final exam" on Friday that you were supposed to prepare for all day today. I wondered if I'd even be able to go to work tomorrow to take the test, and had visions of me bringing her with me to do it. I speculated on when she could go back to school, how she got the pink eye in the first place, and if she had given it to anyone else. I wondered to myself: if I did have to skip work, why did I still wake up at 6:15 and get entirely ready before she woke up and I noticed her eye?

But all of those concerns and worries were a blip on the radar compared to what popped into my head quicker than you can say pink eye: eye drops! It was like a neon sign flashing, all morning: EYE DROPS! EYE DROPS! EYE DROPS! When you have a child like Laura, you're not being dramatic at all when you want to roll around on a bed of nails rather than administer eye drops (to both eyes) three times a day for the next SEVEN days! And just as I expected, despite my nonchalance, when the moment came, the tears and begging and screaming and thrashing was truly a sight to behold. Not to mention that the bottle of drops the doctor prescribed is so tiny that it seems to have exactly 42 drops in it, so the first drop this morning was basically wasted. It may have touched her eyelashes, but I can't be sure. Even if it did get in, her eye being so full of tears just washed it right back out. I'll be surprised if it ever clears up, at this rate.

And just for the record, my favorite color is not pink. So hopefully I'll be spared the same fate!

Bubble Dress

The bubble dress is completed! As I said in my first post about the dress, I have a really hard time using patterns, and this time was no exception. The directions are well-written and the pictures are great, but that still wasn't enough to help poor clueless me. I was so stuck at the end on how to sew the bodice and skirt together in a manner that looked halfway decent, that I ended up having to trek up to our city's quilt store to get some advice. I happened to arrive right when a clothing construction class was finishing, and the instructor took a few minutes to talk with me. That's how nice they are there; she gave me one-on-one attention and some invaluable advice (for free) and seemed happy to do it!

The funny part was that the moment the instructor and I began looking at the pattern together and discussing it, the light bulb went off and I knew exactly what I was supposed to do. The trip wasn't wasted though-I got some great fabric, and an ego boost from everyone who admired the dress. Even better, the instructor told me she has used Oliver + S patterns in the past, and while they make some adorable clothes, the patterns are sometimes lacking in really detailing all the steps to take. So that made me feel better too.

The dress is a lot shorter on Laura than I expected (it is a size 5) so if I make it again, which hopefully I will, I'm going to try to make it longer. It doesn't "bubble" as much as Laura would like, but most people who have made the dress say the same thing. I might try a little bit less elastic next time to make it poof a bit more. As usual, my pictures stink and really don't do justice to the cute fabric (the blue is a tad darker in real life). I think it looks really cute on Laura!

Laura being forced to try it onStarting to enjoy herself more once I allowed her to curtsyThe buttons which also look cuter in real life

The Scream Heard 'Round The World

What's that? You just heard hysterical screaming? Yeah, that was Laura. See, she had a splinter-a tiny little thing-in her palm, and after several days, it still hadn't worked itself out, and I knew I had to get it out. A nice bath first to soften up her skin, and we were ready to roll. Except that Laura wasn't. I have never met such a strong 5 year old in my life. I COULD NOT unclench her hand. She was screaming and crying, begging me to stop. Not fun. Finally I had to send her to her room so that both of us could calm down. She sat in there, crying that she wished she was six so she could be older and brave.

Eventually she reemerged and we tried again. No dice. I simply couldn't pin her and get it out at the same time. I have to say that splinter-removal is definitely a time when I miss the Army Man. I hate having to do the actual removal and he always handles that, plus the two of us combined are usually strong enough to hold her down. Remember, this is the girl who at nine months old had to have the biggest male nurse in the ER hold her down so the doctor could check her ears. She is strong, she is stubborn, and she is huge wimp. Not a good combination.

Finally my motherly instinct kicked in and I figured out the answer, the answer which is usually the answer to everything with Laura: the TV. We set up camp in front of the TV and she was calm enough to let me poke around for a minute and eventually get it out (or so I hope-I honestly can't tell if I got it or not). Afterward she was proud of herself and her extreme bravery and has been reliving her 'victory' ever since. And after all that, I'll now be dying at age 88 instead of 91.

Updates

There's not much new here at our house. Our snow melted almost as quickly as it came, but sadly it didn't take the cold weather with it. Laura and I are desperate for some warmer weather! I'm already planning what clothes I want to make Laura for spring, and I've purchased a few patterns. Unfortunately for me, I'm such a visual person that I have a VERY hard time with patterns-no matter how many diagrams there are, it's still not enough. I bought this pattern from oliver + s (I'll make it without the scalloped sides) and I hope it will be just as cute as the pictures, despite my ineptitude with patterns. Stay tuned to see the finished product soon--I hope! I've also been trying to learn how to use my sewing machine to quilt, with terrible results. It would be so much faster and cheaper if I could figure out how to do it and quilt my own quilts, but I'm quickly accepting that it's just not meant to be.

But enough crafty talk, how about some pictures of Laura? I know that's the main draw here! I have a few from Valentine's Day so you can see just how much she enjoyed the holiday.

Heart shaped toast for breakfast (Mommy's idea)With her new dog that Daddy sent (with a little help from Mommy). She named it Cassie.Heart shaped sandwich for lunch (Laura's idea) We also had to use her heart shaped plate.

Fun In The Snow

It was A LOT of fun.

Oh, THOSE Eyes

Driving home today, Laura was looking at a library book when she came across something so shocking that her poor 5 year old brain just couldn’t take it: someone had written in the book. Being the stickler for the rules that she is, Laura was appalled. APPALLED! She demanded that I turn around and read what had been written (perhaps in an attempt to track down the perp and dole out some justice). I informed her that sadly, I was driving, and could not turn around to look. In her most exasperated tone, she said, “Well, turn on your back eyes then!”

I’m afraid I had to decline.

Lost Teeth And Snow--Oh My!

I'm afraid if you're on my email list (and pretty much every one of my readers is!) all of this will be old news to you. But I'm kind of at a loss for what to blog about, and it's been over a week so I felt like I needed to put something up!

The first thing to report is that Laura lost her first tooth yesterday at school. It had only been loose since Sunday and I really didn't think she would loose it so fast! It happened during playtime in the gym, right before I arrived to pick her up. The teacher said Laura thought she broke off a different tooth and got pretty upset. There was more blood involved than I recall experiencing as a child, and added to Laura's generally dramatic nature, you probably won't be too surprised to hear that when I arrived she was coming out of the bathroom, being attended to by her teacher and the director of the school, both of whom were desperately trying to calm her down.

Once she saw me she became even more upset and it took a while to get her to settle down. I think all the attention wasn't helping either...I can tell when my daughter is actually starting to calm down but is continuing to ham it up for the attention. Sigh. Such is the life of a Mommy to a drama queen. In the end, the suggestion that we email Daddy with her big news was enough to calm her down, and she showed off her new gap to all of her classmates. We took a few pictures at home, something that proved to be much more difficult that I expected.At night Laura wasn't too sure about how she felt about the tooth fairy coming. She had lots of questions-the most important being would the tooth fairy wake her up when she lifted up her pillow. Luckily we had just had a dental appointment the day before and Laura was given a litle plastic tooth, so we used that to house the tooth. Even better news is that after raiding Laura's piggy bank, the tooth fairy was able to deliver the goods in the form of a $2 bill. The tooth fairy also left a teeny tiny little note thanking Laura for her tooth. The tooth fairy thought this was quite a bit of inspired theatrics, and sure enough, Laura loved it.

So not only did Laura wake up to money this morning, but snow too! We have about an inch of snow, but it's very icy and not that great for playing in. Surprisingly it continued to snow for several hours this morning, and the governor of the state has declared a state of emergency-apparently there is about 15 inches in the mountains! We are lucky to not have much snow, but the ice has made the roads pretty yucky, so we are staying home today. Still, I wish I could have seen all the snow plows out on the main roads-definitely not something we ever see here in our part of North Carolina!

Laura attempting a snow angel

Moxie thought licking the snow was the best idea everChecking out what the front yard had to offerMoxie blowing in the windOutside for a second round of fun. It was much colder!

Sew Laura, Sew!

Laura and I celebrated Christmas this year in California, with our families. It was a wonderful trip, one that I should probably write about, but at a later date. Right now I wanted to share pictures of Laura with one of her new toys.
One day, well before her birthday, Laura and I were at Joann's where she spotted a sewing machine "just for little girls!" It was small, partly pink, and extremely cheap looking, and she just had to have it. It cost a mere $24 and I could have bought it for her right then and there, but she told me that she was going to put it on her birthday list. I was all for that plan, thinking that delayed gratification was something good for her to learn about. I went back later, under cover of darkness, and snatched it right up. I hid it in the garage and completely forgot about it. Seriously. In fact I so totally forgot about it that a few weeks after her birthday, when Laura saw a bag in the garage and asked me what was in it, I had to open the bag to find out (and then quickly snap the bag closed while squeaking out "nothing!" to my very curious daughter).

In the end, the sewing machine was under the tree as a gift from Santa. Laura opened it and was thrilled and told me later that it was just what she always wanted. We finally took it out of the box a few days ago, put in the necessary batteries, and fired it up. She has to use her hand to work the pedal since her legs aren't long enough, and it is loud and I'm fairly certain it will break any day now, but she loves it. Loves it. And I love seeing how happy she is, and that she, the wild and crazy child who jumped three feet in the air today over the mention of a juice box, can sit calmly and sew. She has big plans for a blanket for her babies, but right now is content to just sew in a straight line on the fabric that Santa also provided. Her complete and utter satisfaction with her new toy, along with the shock and surprise of getting just what she wanted was pretty much the best part of my Christmas this year. How DID Santa know to get it for her?

This is my favorite picture. Look how serious she is!

New Year Fashionista

You all know that I really don't care how Laura dresses herself, as long as she's seasonally appropriate, but I have to admit that I did a double take this morning when she walked in to show off her outfit. She chose her legwarmers, dress shoes, and running socks, along with a dress, necklace, and headband. Her smile told me that she was just so proud of herself, so I told her that she looked beautiful. After accepting my compliments, she pranced off to check herself out in my full length mirror.

I heard a gasp and a "whoa!" and I cringed, thinking that she was about to come to the realization that she looked ridiculous. Instead, I heard these words: "I really DO look beautiful!!"
The picture doesn't really do the outfit justice, but I'm sure you can tell from her pose just how beautiful and confident she felt.

Ring Of Fire

It's been a while since Laura has serenaded the blogosphere. Luckily for each of you, I caught her on video last night singing along with one of her favorite songs. I'm not very good at filming her all stealth-like, and she figured out pretty quickly what I was doing. So be sure to imagine her belting it out much more enthusiastically than she is here, since she felt "shy" once I started filming. Without further ado, Laura chaneling Johnny Cash.

My First Kidlife Crisis

kidlife crisis n (2009): a period of emotional turmoil that occurs when a parent realizes that his or her once tiny baby is no longer so tiny, and has reached a previously unimaginable age. The parent views this marching of time as unacceptable. Longing for the child's younger days, the parent may spend hours browsing old photographs, watching home movies, and sighing over babies.*

So, I've experienced my first kidlife crisis. It started back in September, when the preparations for Laura's birthday began. I really couldn't believe she was about to be five. Five is old. Five is a big kid, not a baby. Five is the age that other kids are, but not my little girl, no sir. She's a baby and will be staying that way. Not that I think she's an infant, or treat her as such, but when I see a lady out and about with a baby in an infant carrier, sometimes I find myself thinking, "Isn't that nice that we both have babies." Then I realize that my baby is actually off at pre-K and she weighs 35 pounds and just that morning had a discussion with me about our dog's uterus (note: oh yes, we really did have that conversation!) Not such a baby anymore, I suppose.

I imagine I'll have similar crises as she gets older. The Army Man and I always joke about what trouble she's going to be as a teenager, and I don't doubt it. But I truly can't even imagine what that will be like. No more than I could have imagined her as a 5 year old when she was brand new. It's simply unfathomable. I look at her and try to picture her going to elementary school, calling friends on the phone, driving, dating, going to college, getting married, having her own children. But all I see is a little baby, screaming and crying for one reason or another. Or a tiny little girl, laughing that deep, crazy belly laugh that only little kids can manage. It's like "Father Of The Bride", only a million times more so.

And so, as I sat there one night, experiencing my kidlife crisis, I looked through old pictures of Laura and I wrote this piece (or whatever you want to call it). I'm not sure how much sense it makes, but it felt wonderful to write, and I think I'll share it. Be warned: since this post is written by a Mommy about her child, it's going to be a long one.

I’m the brand new mother to a tiny little baby. She’s bald and thin, and she cries all the time. All she ever wants to do is nurse, and she never spits up. Her poop is disgusting and no diaper can hold it in. She must be carried horizontally to the changing table, like an offering, to avoid leakage. She never wants to sleep. Her bouncy seat is what I put her in at 3am to get her back to sleep, to keep her quiet so she doesn’t wake up her grandparents whom we’re living with. Her Daddy is back in Georgia finishing his Army training. He made it in time to see her be born, but had to leave when she was three days old. I’m a disappointed mother. This experience is nothing like what I had imagined: there’s no nursery that I lovingly decorated ahead of time. My husband wasn’t home to run out and buy me ice cream when I was pregnant. I don’t even live in my own house. I’m moving in just a few weeks, across the country, away from my family and friends. I’m sad and scared, but would never tell anyone. I’m a confused mother. I didn’t feel the instant love for my daughter that I thought I should. I don’t feel like a natural. I’m in pain, trying to recover from a childbirth experience that was more traumatic than I ever could have imagined. I feel completely unprepared to be responsible for this tiny, beautiful little girl. I feel young and old all at once. I never knew I could love someone so much.
I’m the exhausted mother of a tiny little girl. She’s one and never sleeps. Eating is a disaster. She’s always choking on her food, and she doesn’t want to use the sippy cup. She’s been walking for almost 3 months now. She hates shoes and always wants to be barefoot. She’s still bald, but she’s gorgeous. Pale white skin and beautiful blue eyes. A tiny little thing, occasionally mistaken for a doll. She is the center of attention everywhere she goes. She waves to strangers and people can’t seem to resist stopping to talk to her. She’s starting to talk, saying “dog” as her very first word. I never knew I could love someone so much.
I’m the exasperated mother of a tiny toddler. She’s two and she’s into everything. She loves to dance. She goes to daycare and is the favorite of her teacher. She gives up the ‘pa-pa’ (pacifier) in exchange for a doodle pad. She gets her tonsils and adenoids removed and can suddenly eat without choking. She’s insanely energetic and always trying to give me a heart attack with her antics-jumping off the couch, playing by the stairs, running away in stores. She starts to grow a little bigger. She learns to use the potty and never has a single nighttime accident. Daytime is an entirely different story. She favors her Daddy yet always calls for me at night. Her smile is so charming and silly, and her pout is just delightful. I never knew I could love someone so much.
I’m the desperate mother of a little minion of the devil. She’s three and has stopped napping. She’s still not sleeping through the night. She’s making me realize the terrible two’s are nothing. She misses her Daddy who’s gone for six months. She cries and screams and whines and makes me contemplate locking myself in my bedroom. She’s getting smarter every day. She knows her last name, she’s dressing herself. She loves princesses. She knows how to use the digital camera and always wants to take pictures. She plays pretend games with me. She tells me hysterical, clever things like, “We have a situation” which make up for all of the grief she gives me. I never knew I could love someone so much.I’m the hopeful mother of a not-so-tiny little girl. She’s four and she’s staring to behave. She’s growing like crazy. She talks all the time. I’m continually amazed by the things that she says. She wants to learn about the human body. She’s sensitive and caring. She loves going to preschool and is friends with all the boys. She loves to sing. She dresses herself and favors her pink tutu and blue boots. She has an imaginary friend named “Little Bug” who is constantly causing trouble. He has to be spanked frequently. She loves playing outside. I never knew I could love someone so much.
I’m the mother of the most beautiful, smartest, funniest five year old girl. She is dramatic. She is outgoing. She is sweet. Something about her personality is magnetic. Her teachers love her. The kids in her class always want to play with her. If we go to a store, the clerks want to give her things (candy seems to be the most popular offering). She prides herself on following the “rules” and loves to discuss other people who don’t. She is very concerned about safety. She’s bossy but not in a forceful way (most of the time). She’s stubborn and wants to get her way, yet continually surprises me with her generous nature. She hates to lose any game we play. She’s extremely sensitive and empathetic, and will cry if someone else is in pain. She hates shots but loves the doctor. Her scream is eardrum piercing. Suddenly she’s interested in babies and loves to hold their hands and help them walk around. I’m shocked that my rough and tumble girl holds their hands so gently and sweetly. She never stops talking. She loves to spell words and will approach me and say in one long drawn out breath, “How to you spell ‘I love you so much and you are my best friend and I want to play with you’?” and expect me to sit there and dictate the entire sentence to her. The excuse “That’s how God made me” is heard frequently from her. She loves drawing and does a better job at it than her mother. She tells me she loves me and it's the best feeling in the world.

I never could have imagined what having a child would be like, but it’s fantastic. Loving someone so much is easy when she’s Laura.

*A million kudos and thanks to my friend Angela for coming up with this oh-so-clever name. I think it's a stroke of genius. I do however, give myself credit for writing the definition.

October 8th

I'm really having a hard time believing that Laura is 5 today. When did this happen and where did my tiny baby go? I'd like to write more on the subject, but today is so busy, and tomorrow we're going out of town for a while, so hopefully I'll be able to post a belated birthday post when we get back.

October 8, 2004October 8, 2005October 8, 2006October 8, 2007October 8, 2008
October 8, 2009