Comfort Soup Italian-style for the sick house + quick potty update

sicky girl

Since Sunday, Paul and Lily have had the sniffles and coughs. No serious fevers, they have just both been feeling all-around blah. Lily was actually well enough to go to school on Monday, but after I tried bringing her in on Tuesday, they called me and suggested I bring her home early. I rushed right over and scooped her up- stopping for princess stickers on the way, of course. Yesterday everyone was home and having a sick day, so I made this cozy and easy to make ravioli chicken soup from the "Nanny Rose Recipe Vault".

Ravioli Chicken Soup
(serves 8+)

Ingredients:

4 cups chicken broth
2 cups water
1 12 oz package of frozen, small-shaped raviolis
2 cups packed baby spinach
6 cloves garlic, minced
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp basil
1 tsp parsley
1 large egg
Salt and pepper to taste
Parmesan cheese (optional)

Cook ravioli in separate pot and set aside. Meanwhile, saute garlic in olive oil in large pot over medium-low heat for about 5 minutes. Next, add broth and water and bring to a boil. Add basil, parsley, salt and pepper to taste, then remove broth from heat. Crack egg over the broth and quickly mix in with beater so it breaks up into small bits and turns white. Add the spinach and stir in until wilted, then the raviolis last. Serve up in large, shallow soup bowls and stir in some grated or shredded Parmesan cheese if desired. If you have the sniffles, adding cheese is not the best idea, although some people just can't say no to extra cheese!

Ravioli in one pot, broth and seasoning in the other

And there you have it- the perfect comfort soup, I guarantee it! We ate it up so quickly I almost forgot to take a picture of it! It will fill your belly and warm your spirit.

Good to the last bite...

  
On a side note, I have backed off quite a bit on potty training Lily lately. After one too many fits and kicks and screams from her, I continue to offer it any chance I get, but the only person who she will willing sit on the pot for is her daddy right now! Unfortunately, he's at work most of the time, but when he's home, he can usually get her to sit on it at least a couple of times a day. She still hasn't made anything in it since those first few times, but here's hoping we'll have a breakthrough soon!

How are you doing with potty-training if you're in the process as well?

That reminds me- a few weeks ago, they had back-to-school night at Lily's daycare, and it made me feel better about the potty training thing when, a) the only thing any parent there had to ask the teacher about was potty training help, and b) the "potty hall of fame" wall was completely...

BARE!

Not really sure what to think about that...it really can be hard, huh? I know they have the kids sit on the pot at her school (there is not even a changing table in her classroom), but you'd think they'd learn faster in a group...I had actually been hoping they'd teach her so I didn't have to!

Another thing I wanted to mention in this post is that I am moving towards changing up the layout here. I'm kind of "over it", and my blog is about more than just eating healthy and recipes now, so I think the general look should reflect that. The name will be the same, of course, but I don't know how the rest will look. So stay tuned and don't be surprised if next time you visit, things look different!

Potty Training Continues...

Yesterday, I started implementing a new tactic. It wasn't planned, it just sort of happened.

Last week, I continued with the "no TV shows for babies who where diapers" mode of teaching. For the first three days, she cried about it and kept asking over and over, and would sometimes sit on the potty then get right back up, as if to say: "There! I did it! Give me Elmo!" She quickly saw this was getting her no where, then seemed to give up on asking to watch TV, and also on even trying to use the potty.

We did have one success where she actually went in it, and I was very happy about that. Through the Labor Day holiday weekend, we continued with the potty-training with pull-ups or no diaper at all when home, and only had that one success in about 10 days.

So, yesterday morning, she suddenly started begging me to watch her Mickey Mouse Clubhouse DVD. Maybe it was because it was a rainy day and we were inside, or maybe it was just because. But, I thought, let's try something new, and I said to her, "Okay, Lily. I will let you watch one episode of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse after bath time tonight if you try to use the potty at least three times today. And you have to sit on the potty each time for at least five minutes, okay?" She just nodded her head then wandered away, I hoped in recognition of the plan. Later, she went on to try and use the potty three times exactly as we discussed, and then she started asking to watch her show again. I reminded her she had to wait until later before she went to bed, which made her cry a bit, but then she got over it.

One way to keep her busy and her mind off of Nemo and TV

Later, we went to the store and there were these little Finding Nemo figurines for $1. She saw them, and pulled one of each off the rack. I saw them as the perfect little reward for actually making something on the potty. So, we got them.

She seemed to forget about them once they were in the shopping bag in the car, but as soon as we got home, she started asking for them. So I told her she could pick one, and that the rest would be hers once she made poopy or pee-pee on the potty. I explained she would get for each time she actually went on the potty. She seemed to filter that part out, because after she told me "Nemo!" and I gave her Nemo, but she didn't get Dory, Squirt or Bruce, she started howling. I put the 3 other figurines on a high shelf in the bathroom where she could still see them, but not reach them, and told her again how things were going to be.

It's been months since she has thrown such a tantrum... 

But, I stayed firm, and just let her cry it out. Paul even stepped in to help and try to calm her, still unwavering from the deal I had made with her. She just cried and cried and rolled around on the floor, asking for Dory every now and then, and then crying louder when I told her once she made poopy or pee-pee on the potty, then she could have one of them.

She eventually calmed down, and long story short, she ended up trying to use the potty four more times that day, for a total of seven times that day! That is her personal best! Nothing came out at any of those times, but I could tell she was genuinely trying.

Waiting up on the top shelf...that Elmo sticker book is her special "potty time only" book

So, maybe there is something to the reward system. We'll try that for now and see how it goes. Today Lily is 2 1/2 and it's also her first day in the "older two's" classroom at her daycare. Maybe this is the beginning of real progress in her potty-training journey... 

Looking out the window at school

By the way, thanks for all of the advice and support so far! It really means a lot to me, and every suggestion makes a huge difference!

Potty Training Update 5

As I said in my last potty training post, I decided to ease up a bit on Lily. Not only did she develop that nasty rash, but she was also becoming increasingly resistant. She only tries to go on the pot when it "suits her". So, I gave her a break for about two weeks, and then she got a little cold, so she stayed home with me the other day. I decided, "let's try this again". She wore only panties or nothing at all, and although we had many accidents, she was willingly trying and we even had one success. Hooray!

I hoped that we'd be able to stay on track through the weekend, and Saturday she woke up feeling better, but very cranky. I kept at the potty training anyway, although she was not as compliant about it. I caught her doing the "I have to pee" dance, and asked her if she needed to use the potty. She said "No", but kept on holding herself and dancing around on tip toes. I brought her to the potty anyway,  and this inevitably ended up with her throwing a temper tantrum when I tried to get her sit on it, thus resulting with urine everywhere- on the floor, all over the potty, on me, on her, on the sink...it was bad.

Mommy had a mini breakdown. And needed to go lay down for a while upstairs.

Paul was there to take over and gallantly cleaned up the pee mess so I didn't have to (this made me happy). I layed down for about 15 minutes or so upstairs, crying from the stress of the situation, and then finally came to the conclusion it was time to play hardball. I came to this conclusion because, a) I know she knows how to use the potty, but is just resisting me, b) she keeps getting rashes and diapers are furthering that, and c) she's almost 2 1/2 and it's time to move on from the diapers. 

Seeing something like this would normally make me go "aw!", but now all I can think is: "No more diapers!!!"

So, I went downstairs with a pull-up in hand (yes, I know you shouldn't use those, but we're trying them anyway) and calmly told her, "Okay, Lily. You can wear your diapers again. But, just know that diapers are for babies and you're a big girl now, but if you want to wear diapers that's fine. But, just so you know, babies don't watch TV, that's only for big girls." I told her this as I put her diaper on and she calmly looked at me, taking it all in, and said nothing. Since then, anytime she asks me if she can watch a DVD, I remind her of our "talk", and she whines, but then eventually lets it go. Yesterday morning was the first time in 3 1/2 days where she finally went and sat on the potty without me suggesting it, after I told her she couldn't watch her Minnie Mouse DVD. Then, before her bath last night, she willingly sat on it again and went pee! Hooray!, said Mommy. Whaaa!, said Lily. For some reason she finds it upsetting when she actually does what she's supposed to on the potty- what's that about?

So, is it working? let's hope so.

What do you think of this method? Does it sound too harsh? I honestly hate to give "ultimatum"-type deals, but I am at my wit's end. Am I being too hard on her? She has clearly demonstrated that she can do it, but just doesn't want to and I think it is because she is just being "rebellious". I have tried the reward method, the clapping and dancing praises when she does have a movement properly, the going panties-only and asking her every 15 minutes if she needs to go...nothing has worked, and I've been trying. They've been trying at the daycare. She holds it until she bursts. What am I to do?

Have you tried using a doll or other toy to encourage potty training?

Just for the record, these are things we have tried:

1. Potty-time books. Result: seemed to have no effect
2. Sesame Street/Elmo potty-time videos. Result: didn't even want to watch them
3. Singing and dancing praises when she does make something on the potty. Result: runs away crying
4. Giving her a special treat (fruit snacks) when she sits on the potty. Result: will only sit on the potty in order to get the treat
5. Reading a special book when she sits on the potty. Result: this actually has worked twice now
6. Going without diapers for 3 days in a row. Result: lots and lots of clean-ups and a cranky toddler who holds her pee in until she bursts all over the floor

Let me know what you think, and any advice and encouragement is greatly appreciated!!!

Potty Training Update 4

So...things have not been going so well. I know that is expected, but what happened was poor little Lily got a weird rash, the kind of rash that even the pediatrician could not identify, and so Lily was prescribed an antibiotic and special powdered soak. The rash covered a good part of her bottom and thighs, so whenever she'd have an accident, it would become irritated. This was no good.

So, my focus instead went to making this nasty rash go away, and I tried as much as I could to stay on track with encouraging her to use the potty, but with the amount of accidents she was having versus successes- and by successes, I mean the one time she made it to the potty and got part of her BM into it -it just became clear it was not the right time to put potty-training pressure on her. Now, at this time we are taking a break until the rash is completely gone and I feel she is ready to give it a go again.

I am still asking her if she needs to go and if she wants to try the potty, and sometimes she's into it, sometimes she's not. I'm trying to be patient because, if you saw my last potty training post, you probably noticed my patience was thinning. But, that's not fair to Lily or me, so we are taking it slow again. I tried diving right in, but maybe that's not the way it's going to work for my girl. 

I hope I'll just know when she is ready, or that she'll tell me. That would make things a whole lot easier. 

Potty Training Update 3

This SUCKS!

Potty Training Update 2

Yesterday, I successfully got her to wear panties all day, except during nap. But during her nap she did stay dry. We went on the potty every hour and I asked her as often as I felt necessary. Not once did she actually go on the potty, but she did willingly sit on it (while being entertained by her special Elmo sticker activity book). We had 2 actual accidents, meaning she is more than able to hold it for long periods of time. 

Today she went back to daycare and panties-only continued there. I was told that she held it all the way until mid afternoon, and then she wet herself. Not once did she actually go into the potty.Once we got home, I tried giving her a special snack while she sat on the potty; she just wanted to take the snack and walk away with it.

I bought a bunch of goodies the other day that were on sale at Kmart for super cheap ("Manager's Special"). I have a couple little things stashed in the medicine cabinet for if she actually goes into the toilet, though I may just do the song and dance thing. Maybe I will save those for the first day goes accident-free...what do you think? 

 

Potty Training Blues

SO, I have been encouraging Lily to use the cute little potty I got her every since she was about 18 months old, figuring the sooner the better, right? And by starting that early, I wasn't expecting her to use it right away, I just wanted her to get familiar with it and know what it was. I got her 2 cute potty books and let her put some stickers on it and even happily watched her put her Winnie the Pooh on it when he had to go. 

Recently, when she was around 24 months, she started actually voluntarily sitting on it and even making grunting sounds to try and get herself to go. She'd even look and see if she made anything, and I thought things were going pretty well. I even got her some cute pink pull-up diapers to make practicing potty time easier. 

Then one day this past May, she finally went! Yay! I couldn't be more excited. And, I knew this didn't mean she was going to go on her potty every time from now on, but it was a big step towards her (and my) potty-trained goal. She kept practicing happily for a few weeks after that with little issue, but then all of a sudden a couple weeks ago she has now been nothing but resistant to using her potty.

Boo. I am REALLY sick of buying and changing diapers!!!

So, I tried singing a song to get her to try the potty. She screamed. I tried showing her how her dolly liked to use it. She would put dolly on, but not herself. I would, and still do, encourage her to go on every chance I get. She still defies me and her potty.

So, today I am reaching out to my mommy community asking for advice: how did you potty train your kids? Or what are you doing now to train them that seems to be working? 

I have been told repeatedly that when they're ready, they're ready, and you have to just be patient. And I am being patient; it's not like I'm punishing her or getting mad at her for not trying. Although, the other day she peed on the floor right after getting out of her bath, and after I had asked her if she needed to go potty, I got a little pissy and told her how big girls go on the potty and she needed to remember to tell mommy when she had to go.

So, I'm thinking of trying the bribery method that my mom used on me using fruit snacks as her "reward", but I really do not want to do that. I don't want her to expect a treat just for doing what's right. What can I do instead?

My most recent modus operandi was to decorate Lily's potty with stickers to hopefully make it look more appealing to her. When she first saw it, she made "ooo" and "ahh" sounds like she normally does when she likes something, but she still wouldn't sit on it. I kept trying, and yesterday I did get her on it, but perhaps the new Little Mermaid doll I gave her helped keep in her a good enough mood to attempt such a feat :)

Perhaps this is the beginning of progress in the potty-training department? I certainly hope so! Only time will tell...

But, until then, please share your advice or stories in the comments below, thanks a lot!!! Wish us luck! (just for the record, Lily is now 2 years and 4 months old).

It's been a month for boo-boos

Lily is going through another growth spurt again, and this one comes with lots of boo-boos.


First of all, at her big 2nd birthday party with her cousin Rhys who was born just 2 days after her, (which was over a month ago btw), she got herself a big old goose egg the size of a golf ball on her forehead right as we were packing up the car, due mostly to her just being overly tired since she was unable to nap that day. After that finally started to completely clear up, she had another birthday party-related mishap after her other cousin's bday party and took a topple down the stairs. Luckily, she landed on the soft, cushy, yoga mat I leave at the foot of said stairs for just in case something like that were to happen, and she did not even suffer a single bruise or bump.


Now for some pictures to help lighten mood...

Lily's double chocolate cake made by Nanny

Cousins :)

Pin-the-bow on Minnie made by me (you know you thought it was store-bought!)

Lovely birthday girl, pre-bump

After the trauma of that event seemed to have finally worn off, on Easter she took a spill on Grandpa and Grandma's back porch step and scraped the side of her little face and landed herself a partial black eye. ACK!!!! I thought I could not take anymore of these little tumbles, and swore after that I'd keep her locked up in a padded room, but then I reminded myself that kids fall, and this was something I was just going to have to deal with and let her go through. THEN, earlier today (Friday) she took yet ANOTHER little topple when she decided it was a good idea to try and push her toy lawnmower on the back cement stoop, and when Grandpa tried to stop her, she fell over her lawnmower and landed face first onto the concrete pathway at the bottom of the stoop, DIRECTLY ON TO THE SAME PART OF HER FACE SHE SCRAPED LAST WEEKEND.


:::sigh:::


She now has quite the collection on her sweet little face, and I am almost too ashamed to take her anywhere, fearing the disdainful and scolding looks of other mothers I may cross paths with. I already did have a small incident the day after Easter when I took Lily to Target and the check-out lady decided to inquire about Lily's black-and-blue-and-scabbed face.


It went something like this:


Check-out lady: (looking at Lily in horror) gasp! What happened to her face?
Me: Oh, she had a little tumble yesterday. She's ok.
Check-out lady: What happened?
Me: (looking at her like is it really your business?) Well, she just had a little too much Easter excitement and slipped on the porch step.
Check-out lady: So she fell? (looks at me suspiciously)
Me: (quite seriously) Yes. She fell. She's ok, really.
Check-out lady: (still looking at Lily in horror) She's ok?
Me: YES.
Check-out lady: Are you sure?
Me: Do you have any children of your own?
Check-out lady: Yes, and one grandson.
Me: So, what? Did they never fall before?
Check-out lady: (silent for a moment, then-) Just be careful.


Oh, thank you so much, check-out lady. I really needed to know all that.

Current boo-boo collection

Ugh. So, I felt the need to vent a bit. The grandparents keep telling us it's normal and we can't do much about it except keep her as safe as possible, although it's inevitable she will get into little scrapes and bumps and possible injuries (I recall jumping off the swing set and breaking my right arm when I was 8).  It's part of growing up. She needs to learn how to fall down so she can pick herself back up, and all that jazz.


I'm still going to look into body padding and helmuts...


Anyhoo, does anyone else have any boo-boo tales to tell? Is there anyone out there who can make me feel less guilty? Poor thing...I just hope it doesn't get worse and worse...


And now for some Easter pics so we can end on a sweet note!

Finding her first eggs

I found 2!

Showing Daddy her eggs

Quite the haul (and part of the reason she fell down in the first place)

"There are raisins in these things?"

My pretty Easter sweetie

Have a great weekend!

( I have got to start putting more recipes on here again... )

I won some awards!

In the past 4 weeks, I am proud to say I won not 1, but 2 blog awards! I am quite pleased with this, and decided to pat myself on the back (which I did...literally). I won the "One Lovely Blog Award" which I mentioned in a previous post, and now I have been awarded the "Versatile Blogger Award" now from my friend over at 7 Kids and Counting (7 kids- that's right! She should be receiving all the awards!).

Thus, in keeping in line with how these things are done, I am passing the One Lovely Blog award on today, and I will pass the Versatile Blogger award on in a future post. Thanks again, ladies!

One Lovely Blog Award

This award is personal and only given to a few bloggers,

to encourage each other to keep up the good work!

The three guidelines:

1) Thank the person who nominated you

2) Nominate your favorite blogs and notify them

3) Share a few things about yourself

Thank you so much Tess at In Love by the Beach!

I love your blog and appreciate you thinking of me!

Here are the blogs I'm passing this wonderful award on to:

A Happy Mum

Me As A Mother

Becoming Super Mommy

Quick and Easy, Cheap and Healthy

7 Kids and Counting

It was very difficult to choose just 5, which is why it took me a few weeks to pass it on! I had to reevaluate my reading list and be sure to give this award to the top 5 I felt were most deserving. I truly visit these blogs at least once a week (it would be more, but who has the time?!), and I feel they have a lot to offer and are truly *lovely* But, no worries to the rest of you who did not receive this award! The Versatile Blogger award gets divvied out to 15 different blogs! Now I really have my work cut out!!

OK, now the fun part...

A few things about me you may not already know:

1) When I was younger, I was really into art, and even won several awards for my creations. I wish I had more time now to spend on such things, and hope to find time to pursue it more in the future.

2) I'm known to most of my friends as "the blunt one", meaning you know I will tell you the truth, and I won't sugar-coat it! Come to me whenever you need honest advice!

3) I am a total chocoholic. Yeah, I know...aren't we all? But, seriously, I need to eat chocolate every day like it's a genuine addiction! My dear husband has taken many trips to the local Rite Aid to grab me a Milky Way Midnight bar or bar of Lindt Dark Chocolate.

Now, all this award stuff got me thinking about how I use rewards often to appease my soon-to-be-two toddler, who is becoming increasingly stubborn and willful. I try to use this tactic of "if you do what I'm asking you to do, I will give you a sticker/treat/new book/etc" as little as possible, but I often wonder if I should be doing it at all. Isn't it more important to just raise children to simply obey for their greater good, whether they realize that is the reason or not? And most do not realize that there is a reason why they shouldn't walk into the middle of the street without a parent, or they shouldn't dump all their toys all over the middle of the floor for others (and themself) to trip on, or why it isn't nice to smack Mommy in the face when you're being pissy (No, just me? God, I hope not...). Not that I would reward Lily for NOT smacking me in the face, these are just some examples...

It works for puppies, right?

But, this is how they learn- by their parent(s) or guardian(s) teaching them. But, does it matter how we teach them? After all, animals are trained to do tricks and obey with the anticipation of receiving some kind of treat after they complete the task. Not that I'm comparing children to animals...well, maybe just a little, but what I mean is it works in the animal kingdom, and are we really so separate from them? Or am I just reading too deeply into this as I tend to do?

But I gave you stickers!

I've had plenty of people tell me it's quite alright to use rewards when you want to get your child to do something, as long as you don't over-do it and utilize the tactic at a responsible transgression. It's also ok if you generally reward the child with things that are considered good for them, like a healthy snack, book, or trip to museum. At this time that is how I generally feel about it, but I want to know what you think. Please tell me how you handle teaching your child good behavior and obedience in the comments, or link a blog post you wrote about it. Thanks!

First Rant of the New Year

The holiday insanity has ended, and I'm hoping to get things back on the straight and narrow. So, spring cleaning has begun early in my house, and besides actual cleaning, this includes going through stacks of papers and bills and catching up on projects that were pushed aside during the later 2011 months. Do note the second thing I mentioned there was "bills"; this is obviously the least enjoyable of the early spring cleaning tasks, in that it reminds me of just how in debt I am. There are several entities under that category that are refusing to be forgotten about, which have made their way back to the top of the "to pay" heap. I also just found out about the horrible things that can happen to your energy bill when after your gas expenses have been estimated for the past 5 months, they suddenly become actual expenses. I currently have a headache as I type this just for the record.

Anyway, instead of curling up into a ball and rolling around in the corner while simultaneously pulling my hair out, I decided to vent here...I hope you don't mind. Sometimes I just don't know what else I can do anymore. I feel that I've done as much as I can to cut back on expenses, and I rarely ever treat myself to anything anymore, and we hardly ever dine out, and I can't tell you the last time my husband and I had an actual date. I apply to freelance jobs as often as I find the time to do so- a very competitive market under normal circumstances, which is now pretty much just like trying to win the lottery with this economy. I buy the cheapest diapers I can find that aren't totally useless, and Lily and I only participate in free activities such as going to the park and readings at the public library. What else can I possibly be doing to remedy this bill hell situation????

I try not to stress too much, because if there are 2 things I've learned about stressing out, they are: 1) things always end up working themselves out just in the nic of time anyway, and 2) there's a lot to be said for prayer, even in times of desperation. I have not quite reached the desperation threshold, but I will probably hit it by the end of the week at this rate.

It's funny, I felt like I started the new year off so right (albeit it's only 5 days in), so how did it go so wrong so quickly? Simple: I didn't tend to things last year when I could've as well as I should've. It really feels like I lose no matter what I do, since as soon as I get on top of one debt, another pops up and this time it's accumulated even more girth. And then another one that got put on hold or deferred or just pushed aside reminds me of its existence again, and then I'm ready to break down into a mess on the floor and just cry my eyes out. Is this normal?

I normally don't vent about these things or even discuss them with other people, but I feel that everyone is hurting right now, so why not start? I've always felt I have an issue with sharing how I really feel about things, instead preferring to say things are fine when people ask me how they are, when in actuality they are often far from it. I just hate to worry people- we have enough to worry about anyway, right? But, most of my followers here don't know me personally, so you probably won't be as bothered by my rant as others might be. Or perhaps I am just reading too deeply into things as usual, and my problems are just as easily forgotten by others as my pesky bills are forgotten by me.

There are many things I hope to accomplish in this new year, this year filled with promise and hope. Some of them are:

1. Get Lily potty trained 

2. Get back into my yoga routine

3. Get something published

4. Keep in touch better with people who matter

and of course...

5. Pay off as much old debt as possible

Looks like #5 should be at the top of my list, yet a message that came to me in the middle of my new year's celebration at church was: you can do and be anything you want to be, but the first thing you are is a Mommy. Just writing that and remembering that again brings tears to my eyes, and that is what I'll be holding onto while I sort the rest of the mess in my life out. Lily comes first no matter what, and she will be my rock as much as I am hers during these trying financial times. What else do I/we have if we haven't got family and loved ones in our lives to help us get through tough times? I have so much more to be thankful for anyway, so I will do the best I can and focus more on the 

positive.

* not me, but how I feel now that I vented

I wish you well in all and any resolutions you have for this new year! Thanks for reading!

To Santa or not to Santa?

Hello, my lovelies. 'Tis the season, as we all very well know...you can't walk down the street without hearing Christmas carols blasting on speakers, without seeing lights and tinsle decorating every home and storefront you go by, or without encountering someone in a Santa suit at some point in time during the month of December. Which brings me to the current dilemma I have at hand concerning the Fat Man in Red...

Lily is less than a year old- 21 months to be exact. She has a pretty limited vocabulary at this time, her favorite words being "mama", "dada", "Ogum", "more", and "yeah." "Ball" has also become a new one she likes to say several times a day and address to anything resembling a sphere, from Christmas tree ornaments to oranges to actual balls. Somewhat surprisingly, a new word has entered her index that I didn't expect her to learn so soon, and it's "Santa." It actually comes out sounding more like "sana" from her young tongue, or sometimes "sasa." But, this word is only used when she sees any likeness to the one and only Santa Claus.

Paul and I talked about how we'd handle the whole Santa thing- should we play along with the game of pretend? Use it to our advantage to get her to behave, like so many parents do? Or should we take the more truthful, but far less fun, route of filling her in on the Santa myth early and not buying into something that may just confuse her and have more extreme repercussions later in life? Paul wanted her to have fun with the classic Santa tale, but also liked the idea of being more honest, and so did I, yet we couldn't help but realize that she may end up spoiling it for other kids who do believe in Santa Claus when she tells them what her parents told her. Hmmm...how to handle such a dilemma?

So, you must know what I'm asking here now: how do you handle Santa Claus in your home? Whether you're a Christmas celebrator or not, I want to hear from you! Does your child or children believe in Santa Claus, and if you have older kids who know the truth now, how did you break it to them? Or how did they find out? Do you stand by your decision? Would you do anything differently if you could go back? If you don't play the Santa game, what do you do instead? How do you keep your kids from spilling the truth to their peers?

Tell me in the comments, I really want to know! Lily is still young and I want to know what the best route is since I'm still unsure of what the future holds for the Santa myth in our home. It's really sweet to see her enjoying Mr. Claus' image so much (she has a little rattle toy of his likeness that she hugs and kisses all the time!), but I don't want to give her the impression of consumerism and material things being such an important component to the Christmas holiday. I spoke to Paul as I started writing this, and his answer was (as it tends to be): "just let it evolve, let her have fun." What do you think? Am I reading too far into this, or is it a legitimate cause for concern? 

Thanks for your responses, and thanks for reading!!

Learning to Share

So, here’s an issue I’ve been dealing with concerning Lily lately…she’s not much of a sharer. Many people have told me she’s still very young and that she will learn to share eventually, and to just keep teaching her when the appropriate moment arises. Yet, others seem to think this could be an issue and that I should be firmer in teaching her this valuable skill. Case in point:

Monday I took Lily to one of our local parks and we had a few sharing “incidents.” First, she has gotten into the habit of carrying her beloved Bert and Ernie dolls with her wherever she goes now, and her travel companions caught the eye of another toddler playing at the park named, Nora. Nora pointed right at the dolls and started to head right for them, but her mom stopped her as soon as Lily started to tense up and cry. It’s really that easy to set her over the edge- one only needs to imply that they may want to check out the toy she’s holding or even simply looking at. 

Running around at the park with her best buddies

  Little Nora went on and on about Bert and Ernie, but her dear mom did a good job of keeping her cub away from Little Miss Crankypants Lily. Lily went about her business, but then another little girl who was probably around 2 ½ came over to us and started throwing a green ball around. It seemed that she was definitely trying to get Lily’s attention so they could play. Lily, on the other hand, was interested in nothing but getting that ball from the little girl. The little girl would throw the ball, then Lily would go after it, and then the little girl would go after it too, always getting to the ball first. This upset Lily, although it was clear to me the tot was merely trying to play a game with her.

She went back over to her mom in a confused state, and her mom in turn coaxed her into trying to play with Lily again by rolling the ball to her to she could roll it back. What a sweet lady, such good intentions…too bad she doesn’t know my daughter. Lily instead only wanted to obtain the ball for herself and run away with it, but the little girl’s mom persisted in trying to get them to play together, so I decided to use this time as a learning experience for Lily. It took about ten tried before I finally got Lily to let go of the ball for the little girl to chase and then return to Lily again, and it looked as if Lily was finally starting to understand the simple game of catch and toss. It was pure bliss for me, the Worrisome Mom, when that moment came where Lily looked at the ball in her hand, then looked at the little girl waiting for her to send it back, then let go of the ball and let it roll over to her without crying. I cheered her on and so did the little girl and her mom. What a breakthrough! We had forgotten about little Nora at this time…

It was when the little girl had sent the ball back to Lily again that Nora came out of nowhere exclaiming, “Ball!” and ran right up to Lily and snatched the ball from her hands. This resulted in an eruption of tears from both the ball players, Nora’s mom scurrying up to her telling her “No!” and each little crying girl running to their mother’s arms.

Nora’s mom looked so embarrassed, as I had when Lily kept trying to take the ball for herself. She got Nora to return the ball without much fuss and things quieted back down, but not for Lily. She appeared to be more confused than ever, so I tried to get her to go on the swings with the little girl she’d been playing with, but she was just too upset and indicated to me she wanted to leave. So, leave we did, but not before I said goodbye to the fellow moms and thanked the ball-owner’s mom for the encouragement. Unfortunately, I did not catch her or her darling daughter’s name, so I hope to see them playing at the park again sometime.

This is just a particularly amusing example of Lily’s sharing trials and tribulations; there have been many more where she just screamed and cried and one time she even poked the poor little girl admiring the same pumpkin in the patch as she right in the eye! (The little girl was fine, thank goodness!). So, now, Dear Readers, I am once again asking for fellow moms with toddlers- or with kids who once were toddlers -to weigh in on this and offer up any advice they may have. Is this “normal”? Is Lily still too young to really understand sharing? Should I continue to be patient and just let things evolve? Is there a helpful way you taught yours how to share?

Thanks a lot, and check back Friday for another yummy cookie recipe!

Bonus cutie :)

Toddlers and TV

If you would allow me to digress from my regularly scheduled post on healthy food, there’s another topic that’s been on my mind…

Before I had my Lily, I always felt that I would not let her watch TV until she was at least 2 years old, and then it would only be select shows (like Sesame Street) and for a very limited amount of time. Back then, I was thinking 30 minutes a day MAX.

But, then I found out just how much work it really is to raise a toddler and how draining it can be, and furthermore, how difficult it can be to find any time to do anything but look after said toddler. Being a work-at-home mom, most of the actual work I do gets done when Lily is napping; if I am not totally pooped by the time she goes to bed at night, I work until I am ready for bed myself. My point being, I had no (and still don’t seem to have any) down time.

We don’t have cable, luckily, but we do have the internet- obviously –and know what YouTube is. So, one day I allowed her to watch a couple of short videos of Sesame Street songs. At first she was intrigued, but not completely absorbed by it, and lost interest rather quickly. She was around 14 months old then, and since I noticed that it did capture her attention for a period of time, albeit a short period of time, I decided to reserve “YouTube time” for desperate situations, like when I was cooking and she wouldn’t get out from under my feet or if I had an important phone call I absolutely had to make and could not risk it being interrupted.

Eventually, 5-10 minutes turned into 20-30 minutes, then up to an hour, now Lily is 18 months old and I sometimes allow her to watch Elmo videos for over an hour! During those hour+ periods, it has been because she was sick and it was the only thing that would actually distract her from the pain or because I needed her to calm down to go to bed and just put the TV on in the background while she played. Often, when that has happened, she does more staring and less playing.

It bothers me, but at the same time I get so much done! It is quite a temptation that I am becoming increasingly less able to resist. Of course, I make sure that she gets plenty of actual TV-free playtime and I take her to the park and for walks regularly, but I still worry that I may be causing her to get into a routine that I will not be able to reverse. 

Image courtesy http://www.fairfaxsyndication.com/

We all are well-aware that watching too much TV is bad for our health; mentally because it causes our brains to become prone to ADHD-related conditions as well as zombie-like conditions, and physically because it makes us- children especially –fat and lazy. Also, at least 90% of what’s regularly on TV these days is total CRAP! I feel dumber after watching less than 5 minutes of any of the frighteningly popular reality shows that are on just about every channel. I DO NOT want Lily to think that watching them is okay!

I will also, of course, teach her that there’s a difference between educational programming and junk television when the time comes, but until then, I still wonder if it’s still unhealthy no matter what I allow her to watch.

Dear readers, what do you think? Do you let your young children watch TV, and if so, just how much is allotted? How do you handle situations when your child is in daycare or at a friend’s house? What are your thoughts on the subject overall?

Thanks in advance! I really look forward to hearing from you all!