When our five-month old Baby learned to sit up from a lying position, it was fun - there are so many toys that a five-month old can hold and play! A baby, sitting-up in the middle of the floor, gets much more social interaction with older siblings than before this novelty surfaced.
Now that this skill is practiced and perfected, a new adventure has begun: falling asleep! Since Baby can sit up when put down, baby doesn't stay lying down for long. And, when baby sits up, it is MUCH harder to fall asleep.
As a mom, I know that "this too shall pass". However, it is tragic to watch a baby crying - because "someone" keeps enforcing a sitting position - but baby is tired and wants to sleep! Since I know the different cries, the "I'm tired and want to sleep and I can't figure out why I can't go to sleep' cry mandates that I reluctantly watch the trauma unfold.
After many many attempts to lie down, sit up, lie down, fuss, fuss ... the baby falls asleep.
Unwanted consequence: the drama has put mama in a tired state too! What happened to baby just falling alseep and mama catching up on work before mama's bedtime?
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
Monday, October 19, 2009
Getting Kids In Bed
The house is quiet.. and it's not even 9pm.
Five children are asleep.
Silence.
Peace.
Four children were asleep by 8:15pm
Quiet.
Calm.
All children were awake at 7:30pm.
Noise.
Shouts.
Attitudes.
Grumpiness.
Tired children made sleepy children.
My prayers are that I have energy for the routine tomorrow ... and that tomorrow night will be another good night of having everyone in bed.
Five children are asleep.
Silence.
Peace.
Four children were asleep by 8:15pm
Quiet.
Calm.
All children were awake at 7:30pm.
Noise.
Shouts.
Attitudes.
Grumpiness.
Tired children made sleepy children.
My prayers are that I have energy for the routine tomorrow ... and that tomorrow night will be another good night of having everyone in bed.
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
Serenity out of chaos
Some days I feel like a conductor -- (the director of an orchestra kind, not the train engineer kind).
There is a natural chaos that starts many days: wake up, moodiness of just-waking up children, sibling rivalry; mess from discarded toys and just-finished meal(s), etc. On good days, this is like the orchestra tuning up: it seems like everyone is out of tune with each other, everyone is playing dissonant rhythms, and chaos.
But, then, when things get on routine, amazing music is heard. This is the music: infant sweetly sleeping; several siblings playing well together; the house looking more presentable as chores get done...
Honestly, life with small children is more of the orchestra rehearsal: hints of gorgeous music, but plenty of time spent rehearsing, time outs for the different instruments and lots of patience required on the part of the conductor (maestro?).
There is a natural chaos that starts many days: wake up, moodiness of just-waking up children, sibling rivalry; mess from discarded toys and just-finished meal(s), etc. On good days, this is like the orchestra tuning up: it seems like everyone is out of tune with each other, everyone is playing dissonant rhythms, and chaos.
But, then, when things get on routine, amazing music is heard. This is the music: infant sweetly sleeping; several siblings playing well together; the house looking more presentable as chores get done...
Honestly, life with small children is more of the orchestra rehearsal: hints of gorgeous music, but plenty of time spent rehearsing, time outs for the different instruments and lots of patience required on the part of the conductor (maestro?).
Monday, January 5, 2009
Yea, we got home Thursday night.
Trip was sufficient..
Driving down was a headache (typical 4 hr drive took a little longer than 7 hours!)
Little toddler got a cold on the drive down (somewhere on the NJ turnpike started to hear a little cough).
Her cough turned into a full-blown cold by Monday
(Monday it was *real* nice to see all my nieces/nephews, one Aunt,Uncle and two Cousins ... but, I spent the time comforting sick toddler)
Wee hrs of the morning E. had a fever,
And, at 11am we were seen by NighttimePediatrics and she had a 103 fever and a full-blown ear infection..
Afternoon she was vomiting too...
So, no fun having sick toddler, so we scrapped plans of spending more time with Aunts/Cousins, and we let older siblings just play with new toys at in-laws, and try to comfort sick toddler...
Oh, and this child chose last week to be teething too -- cutting 4 molars plus 2 other bottom teeth!
...
By Thursday, she was feeling a bit better (more of a moaning "my gums are sore, please fix them").. so we had dinner at my moms..
As we pulled into my mom's Driveway, preschooler B. vomited. (argh!)... Glad to be able to spend a few hours at my moms, and B. slept away on the couch.
We ate dinner, socialized then got on the road...
Thankfully, the drive home was EXCELLENT (aside from the van stinking of something burning, which we established was not the engine, just something in the heater vents). And we got home WITHIN 4 HOURS. (Oh, and my husband drove the whole way!).
As we neared our exit on the NJ turnpike, Kindergartner called from the back seat "I don't feel too well"
We made it home, and our kitchen floor was covered with vomit the second she walked in (I'm very thankful that she decided to walk into the kitchen than in living room with carpet!)
By Friday morning, two were feeling better,
Saturday, oldest decided he wanted to share what his siblings had, and he had a bout of vomiting upon waking up from his nap.
Sunday, we were all feeling well enough to go to church (Toddler still taking tylenol to compensate for sore gums and waking up every few hours due to teething pain).
Sunday afternoon we made it to our annual Epiphany hike, but protests were occasionally heard from the teething member of the party!
Trip was sufficient..
Driving down was a headache (typical 4 hr drive took a little longer than 7 hours!)
Little toddler got a cold on the drive down (somewhere on the NJ turnpike started to hear a little cough).
Her cough turned into a full-blown cold by Monday
(Monday it was *real* nice to see all my nieces/nephews, one Aunt,Uncle and two Cousins ... but, I spent the time comforting sick toddler)
Wee hrs of the morning E. had a fever,
And, at 11am we were seen by NighttimePediatrics and she had a 103 fever and a full-blown ear infection..
Afternoon she was vomiting too...
So, no fun having sick toddler, so we scrapped plans of spending more time with Aunts/Cousins, and we let older siblings just play with new toys at in-laws, and try to comfort sick toddler...
Oh, and this child chose last week to be teething too -- cutting 4 molars plus 2 other bottom teeth!
...
By Thursday, she was feeling a bit better (more of a moaning "my gums are sore, please fix them").. so we had dinner at my moms..
As we pulled into my mom's Driveway, preschooler B. vomited. (argh!)... Glad to be able to spend a few hours at my moms, and B. slept away on the couch.
We ate dinner, socialized then got on the road...
Thankfully, the drive home was EXCELLENT (aside from the van stinking of something burning, which we established was not the engine, just something in the heater vents). And we got home WITHIN 4 HOURS. (Oh, and my husband drove the whole way!).
As we neared our exit on the NJ turnpike, Kindergartner called from the back seat "I don't feel too well"
We made it home, and our kitchen floor was covered with vomit the second she walked in (I'm very thankful that she decided to walk into the kitchen than in living room with carpet!)
By Friday morning, two were feeling better,
Saturday, oldest decided he wanted to share what his siblings had, and he had a bout of vomiting upon waking up from his nap.
Sunday, we were all feeling well enough to go to church (Toddler still taking tylenol to compensate for sore gums and waking up every few hours due to teething pain).
Sunday afternoon we made it to our annual Epiphany hike, but protests were occasionally heard from the teething member of the party!
Wednesday, December 24, 2008
They WERE playing nicely together...
My five year old and three year old WERE playing nicely together this morning.
My toddler was toddling around, playing independently.
Last night/early this morning, I had labeled, stamped, and inserted Christmas cards into 150 envelopes. (Believe it or not, that was just the "in-state" Christmas card list!) And, since it is Christmas Eve, my goal was to have them postmarked today.
My husband was home (he had a 9:30 meeting, so wasn't leaving the house quite yet, and he offered to stay home so I could run out and be back shortly.
So, my six year old offered to help me on the 8:45 am errand to the post office. The trip went smoothly, and that was the ONLY errand this whole week that took about ten minutes total!
Unfortunately, when we returned home, we were greeted by a strong whiff of VINEGAR. "What? Why? What happened?"
IT turns out, my five year old, remembered once upon a time that Mommy had used vinegar to clean something, so, the idea was hatched to dump 2 cups of Apple Cider Vinegar on the floor, and dry the floor.
The smell does dissapate slightly when washed with hot soapy water, but Guess what? Apple Cider Vinegar STRIPS hardwood floors.
I really hope some lessons were learned by the kids.
This fiasco pushed 'refinish floors' to a more urgent task!
This is how Christmas Eve Began
My toddler was toddling around, playing independently.
Last night/early this morning, I had labeled, stamped, and inserted Christmas cards into 150 envelopes. (Believe it or not, that was just the "in-state" Christmas card list!) And, since it is Christmas Eve, my goal was to have them postmarked today.
My husband was home (he had a 9:30 meeting, so wasn't leaving the house quite yet, and he offered to stay home so I could run out and be back shortly.
So, my six year old offered to help me on the 8:45 am errand to the post office. The trip went smoothly, and that was the ONLY errand this whole week that took about ten minutes total!
Unfortunately, when we returned home, we were greeted by a strong whiff of VINEGAR. "What? Why? What happened?"
IT turns out, my five year old, remembered once upon a time that Mommy had used vinegar to clean something, so, the idea was hatched to dump 2 cups of Apple Cider Vinegar on the floor, and dry the floor.
The smell does dissapate slightly when washed with hot soapy water, but Guess what? Apple Cider Vinegar STRIPS hardwood floors.
I really hope some lessons were learned by the kids.
This fiasco pushed 'refinish floors' to a more urgent task!
This is how Christmas Eve Began
Friday, November 28, 2008
Pie time!
Yesterday was Thanksgiving...
And, along with the majority of Americans, we did indeed eat Turkey. (Supply and demand, though, the producers of turkeys have been raising and freezing turkeys since last thanksgiving, so there is a greater supply than demand, and turkeys, happily end up being an economical mainstay for Thanksgiving).
But in my mind, competing with turkey, pies are a universal thanksgiving dessert.
I could be like most people, and either buy my pies or make them the week preceeding Thanksgiving, but the making of the pies is as important (and fun) to me as the eating and sharing of pies.
This year, my 6 year old was in charge of crusts: he made three batches of crust = 3 crusts. (Somehow, although following the recipe for 2-crusts each time, each batch really made 1 crust).
PUMPKIN PIE This was completely made by my 6 year old. With molasses in the recipe, it turned out as a yummy darker shade pumpkin pie.
CHERRY PIE Since the 'extra' crust didn't materialize from the batch of crust, we ended up using brownsugar&oats to make a 'crisp' topping. This was the easiest pie to make: store-bought cherry filling mix, made this easy as 1-2-3.
APPLE PIE, Since I had actually bought heavy cream, I *finally* got a chance (with the help of my 5 year old) to make an old-fashioned apple pie recipe. Interestingly, this recipe didn't have any cinnamon - but healthy dose of allspice, nutmeg and clove. This recipe only called for a TOP crust (no bottom crust here) -- which worked perfectly, considering there was only 1 crust obtainable from the third batch.
HOME-MADE WHIPPED CREAM (the real stuff -- the kids have a blast making the whipped cream, and it's less sweet than the artificial whipped topping I typically buy.
With the help of our company and the kids, two/thirds of the pies got eaten for dessert on thanksgiving -- leaving just enough for leftovers today!
And, along with the majority of Americans, we did indeed eat Turkey. (Supply and demand, though, the producers of turkeys have been raising and freezing turkeys since last thanksgiving, so there is a greater supply than demand, and turkeys, happily end up being an economical mainstay for Thanksgiving).
But in my mind, competing with turkey, pies are a universal thanksgiving dessert.
I could be like most people, and either buy my pies or make them the week preceeding Thanksgiving, but the making of the pies is as important (and fun) to me as the eating and sharing of pies.
This year, my 6 year old was in charge of crusts: he made three batches of crust = 3 crusts. (Somehow, although following the recipe for 2-crusts each time, each batch really made 1 crust).
PUMPKIN PIE This was completely made by my 6 year old. With molasses in the recipe, it turned out as a yummy darker shade pumpkin pie.
CHERRY PIE Since the 'extra' crust didn't materialize from the batch of crust, we ended up using brownsugar&oats to make a 'crisp' topping. This was the easiest pie to make: store-bought cherry filling mix, made this easy as 1-2-3.
APPLE PIE, Since I had actually bought heavy cream, I *finally* got a chance (with the help of my 5 year old) to make an old-fashioned apple pie recipe. Interestingly, this recipe didn't have any cinnamon - but healthy dose of allspice, nutmeg and clove. This recipe only called for a TOP crust (no bottom crust here) -- which worked perfectly, considering there was only 1 crust obtainable from the third batch.
HOME-MADE WHIPPED CREAM (the real stuff -- the kids have a blast making the whipped cream, and it's less sweet than the artificial whipped topping I typically buy.
With the help of our company and the kids, two/thirds of the pies got eaten for dessert on thanksgiving -- leaving just enough for leftovers today!
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
Pumpkin Cookies -- a no egg recipe!
I think this is the first cookie recipe I've ever made without eggs,
A good friend brought some pumpkin cookies to my house last month, and I've been looking forward to making them ever since. I finally got the recipe from her, I've modified it for out house.. and now we've made them, and are eating them all up. (Be careful, these are addictive!)
PUMPKIN COOIKIES
These are cake-like, delightful, relatively healthy treats.
I'm excited to have found a no-egg recipe, so that tasting before cooking is (finally!) allowed. (A habit that my kids all have).
1/4 c butter
1/4 c shortening
1 c pumpkin
1 c sugar
CREAM those four ingredients in a bowl
Follow with dry ingredients:
2 c of flour
3/4 t vanilla
1 1/2 t cinnamon
1 T brown sugar
1 t baking soda
After well mixed, combine in the raisins and nuts:
1 c raisins
1/4 c chopped nuts
This makes a the perfect autumn afternoon snack!
A good friend brought some pumpkin cookies to my house last month, and I've been looking forward to making them ever since. I finally got the recipe from her, I've modified it for out house.. and now we've made them, and are eating them all up. (Be careful, these are addictive!)
PUMPKIN COOIKIES
These are cake-like, delightful, relatively healthy treats.
I'm excited to have found a no-egg recipe, so that tasting before cooking is (finally!) allowed. (A habit that my kids all have).
1/4 c butter
1/4 c shortening
1 c pumpkin
1 c sugar
CREAM those four ingredients in a bowl
Follow with dry ingredients:
2 c of flour
3/4 t vanilla
1 1/2 t cinnamon
1 T brown sugar
1 t baking soda
After well mixed, combine in the raisins and nuts:
1 c raisins
1/4 c chopped nuts
This makes a the perfect autumn afternoon snack!
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