this & that

Ramblings

– I am on a mission to throw out or give away 100 things from my house. I’m keeping a list of every item I discard.  I’m up to 11.

– I tried these sugared pecans and they were delicious.  I add them to salad along with baked breaded goat cheese.  mmm…..

-Returned from our trip to NYC, sans kids.  I really struggled leaving Autumn but once I arrived, I did great.  We ate ourselves silly, visited best friends, and enjoyed spending time alone.

– Wow.  Have you see this?  Let’s women pee standing up to avoid nasty restrooms.  Weird but genius.

– Started Autumn on Spinach Smoothies this week.  She loves them.

-Tonight I was too scared to take the trash out at night and asked Nate to instead.  Good thing!  He opened the trash can and a raccoon popped out, inches from his face, before running away.  I would have died on the spot.

– One of my ‘New Year’s Resolutions‘, was to cook with  kale. Thanks to my good friend for sending me the recipe for Olive Garden’s Zuppa Tuscana Soup.  It was scrumptious.  Let me know if you want the recipe and I’ll forward it to you.

– This quilt  gives me the goosebumps.  It’s perfect.   I love the colors, asymmetrical variations, and white background.   Love, love, love, love it.

– Officially started Miss Autumn Bottom on sign language this week.   Scarlett is also relearning it, which will be a big help to them both.

– This is I my 400th post for this blog.  I can’t believe that I’ve dedicated so much time to blogging.

Broken

Can you see the break?  It’s a few inches below the shoulder.

It really was only a matter of time until she broke something.   She is much too daring and fearless to escape toddlerhood without incident.

Scarlett is one tough cookie.  While she cried for few minutes after falling off the slide, she seemed fine twenty minutes later and did not complain much at all.  I only took her to the doctor (two days later!) when I noticed she was not lifting her arm much.  Sometimes having such a high tolerance for pain can work against her.

She is doing fantastic and seems to like having a pink arm.  The cast will remain on for two weeks and will come off right in time for pool season.

**Just last week, I fell down the stairs, while holding Autumn and had to get an x-ray to make sure her little leg was not broken. Thank goodness, it wasn’t, but I am sick of x-rays with my babies.

Deja Vu

Scarlett (left) and Autumn (right) at 7 Months

My Little Ponies

BEST toy ever for 2/3 year-old girls.   I purchased a lot at a second hand-store and they provide for at least an hour or two, per day, of self-entertaining for Miss Scarlett.  I’ve never loved a toy more for making my life easier.

And did you know these are a collector’s items now?  Some go for quite a bit of money on ebay.

Alive and Well

Sorry for the lack of posts…. we are alive and well!  Just busy enjoying warmth and SPRING!  Below are some recent photographs (that include Disney World as well).  Just click on the photos below for larger images.

She dressed herself.  She dressed herself pretty warm (snowboots in April?) but forgot her pants.

Scarlett helping Autumn roll over

And here are photos from Disneyworld….

This photo cracks me up! After 45 minutes of waiting in the heat, she did NOT want to go on Dumbo and I forced her.   What a mean Mom she has.

I am checking on Autumn.  Notice sleeping Scarlett behind us.  She was exhausted after each day at the park.

All the cousins on Nate’s side of the family.  Scarlett was in cousin heaven.

Slacker

It occurred to me that I have been slacking on taking photos to add to Scarlett’s tantrum file.  Her fits are pretty infrequent these days but they still creep up.

I am sick that this picture is out of focus.  Can’t you just hear her yelling ‘NOOO!’ when we tel her it is time to go home?

I love how stiff her angry beautiful little body is in this photo.

* I only take photos of her crying for silly reasons.  Never when she is justified or hurt.

My Favorite Corner

We are renting an older quirky house.  Sure, I have my complaints, but overall, I really like the character and all the large windows.  One day, I’ll post photos of the entire house but for now I’ll just show you my favorite corner.

You enter our front door, go up some stairs and turn left.  Here you’ll find  the girls a reading corner.

The corner is full of children’s literature, plush toys, a pink hippo sitting char, and includes a gallery of Scarlett’s preschool art.

As seen on many other blogs, I used the Ikea RIBBA picture frame shelf to hold books.  The beautiful illustrated covers draws Scarlett to the books often.

I typically reserve this space for the library books so it is new and changing often.

I love finding her off reading on her own.  It is one of those rare moments in life where I feel like I am doing something right as a mother.

(Photo taken October 2010)