Nature's Sense of Humor Strikes Again

For those of you with firstborn younger than my Eden, you may want to listen up. For those of you who have already traveled the path I'm on, laugh it up!

Let's be honest, after the labor-intensive infant stage I was really excited to get to the point when Eden would be willing to entertain herself for brief periods. How excited it would be to have her in her bedroom playing while I did things in the family room (you know, important things like blogging). That day came about a month ago. She was willing to be in another room long before that but only about a month ago would she actually spend some time in that other room without requiring "mommy, mommy" to come help, look, be near. Now she is quite comfortable playing without me.

Of course, just when that occurs, she is also quite interested in getting into messes. So now, she doesn't really need/want me around but I don't dare let her be alone. This week she got a brand new box of Cheezits off the counter (how is she that tall???) and took them into the (carpeted) family room then dumped them. In her attempts to clean up her mess, she walked all over them. Yeah, no more turning my back on this kid. :-)

Her punishment? She had to help me clean it up, including vacuuming. She HATES the vacuum. It still terrifies her. I don't think she'll be making those kinds of messes for a while...

Speaking of words...

Here are some of my (current) favorite phrases spoken (often) by my Eden:

"Bless you!" (after every sneeze within earshot, including her own)

"Yeah, sure." (when she is enthusiastically agreeing to something, such as in response to the question, "do you want a cookie?")

"I do'd (dude) it" (giving evidence that she is indeed nearly two)

"I help you" (this really means: I don't want you to help me, more evidence of her age)

"love you mommy" (need I say more?)

This was NOT in my Franklin

My plans for Monday:
8:00 a.m. - take Voice Male clothes to dry cleaner
9:30 a.m. - watch Eden participate in a Nativity play (as Mary)
10:30 a.m. - visit Irene
11:30 a.m. - visit Charlotte
12:30 p.m. - attend the USU Registrar's Office Christmas party (have lots and lots of fun laughing with old friends and remembering good times and agreeing as everyone goes on and on about how cute Eden is)
2:00 p.m. - put Eden down for a nap and do laundry

How Monday actually went:
4:30 a.m. - wake up with a bad stomachache, lay on the couch
8:00 a.m. - take Voice Male clothes to dry cleaner - Convince a really nice woman to rush our 9 pairs of pants and 12 shirts so that I can pick them up Tuesday
9:00 a.m. - lay on the couch
10:00 a.m. - watch Eden (while moaning on the couch) as Mary in the cutest pre-school version of the Nativity (five preschool boys and my Eden)
10:30 a.m. - yeah, you guessed it, the couch which is where I spent the remainder of my day (except when I moved to my dad's bed so I could watch some mindless television. Did you know that Kirby Heyborne was in a Lifetime original Christmas movie this year?)
2:00 p.m. - watched my mom do my laundry (thanks mom!)
3:30 a.m. Tuesday - finally feel well enough to get some sleep
6:30 a.m. pack up everything, pick up the VM dry cleaning and go pick Phil up at the airport.

We got to Phil's parents' house and he left for the Thanksgiving Point show afterwhich Eden promptly puked her guts out all over me. Poor Eden, she hasn't ever thrown up before. She was pretty upset by it all but rebounded quickly and, for now, is sleeping. . .

Just as I wrote that, she woke up. Now it is several hours later and she is attempting to sleep.

yeah, not what I had planned at all . . .

Anticipation (is keeping me way-ay-ay-y-ting)

I think I may have mentioned that my little girl LOVES food. When she sees food that she likes (and she likes MOST food) she gets pretty excited. So, here is the scene yesterday...

Location: LDS Chapel with about 75 members in attendance
Setting: Sacrament Meeting

Eden and I are sitting on the third or fourth row and to the left side. Phil is on the stand directly in front of us. We've had the announcements, opening hymn and prayer, branch business, Sacrament hymn and prayer, and things are going pretty well. Then the young men begin to walk toward us with the sacramental bread. Eden begins to quiver with excitement. But wait! What is this? The young men have stopped at the end of the pews to wait for President Thornton to receive the bread. This is more than a one-year old can take! The quivering body cannot contain the anticipation any longer. THIS must be vocalized. And so, she begins to grunt-pant-gasp in loud pulsating moans. All eyes (and smiles) are now directed toward us. My face turns red. Her hands are outstretched and (still trembling) grasping for the bread as it is finally brought to our pew. At last that longed-for moment has arrived. Having received her one piece of bread, she is quite content. She doesn't complain that she only gets one. Her world is now at peace once again.

That is, until the sacramental water begins to make its way toward us...

Who Said It? -Motherhood Edition

Match the quotation with the author (give your answers in a response). Answers will be posted in a few days.

1. "Woman, Mother, --your responsibility is one that might make angels tremble and fear to take hold! To trifle with it, to ignore or misuse it, is to treat lightly the most sacred and solemn trust ever confided by God to human kind. The training of children is a task on which an infinity of weal or woe depends. Who does not covet it? Yet who does not stand awe-struck before its momentous issues!"

2. "I am impressed by countless mothers who have learned how important it is to focus on the things that can only be done in a particular season of life. If a child lives with parents for 18 or 19 years, that span is only one-fourth of a parent’s life. And the most formative time of all, the early years in a child’s life, represents less than one-tenth of a parent’s normal life. It is crucial to focus on our children for the short time we have them with us and to seek, with the help of the Lord, to teach them all we can before they leave our homes. This eternally important work falls to mothers and fathers as equal partners. I am grateful that today many fathers are more involved in the lives of their children. But I believe that the instincts and the intense nurturing involvement of mothers with their children will always be a major key to their well-being."

3. "Childbirth is more admirable than conquest, more amazing than self-defense, and as courageous as either one."

A. Gloria Steinem
B. M. Russell Ballard
C. Anna Julia Cooper
D. Colin Powell

Do you have a favorite motherhood quotation? Do share...

And now I know...

I've learned a few lessons lately. Here are two:

1 - If you are going to get your hair cut where it is arid, don't be surprised if it looks different when you get back home to the humidity.

2 - Read the fine print on labels.

Here is some explanation:

1 - I got my haircut while I was in Utah. This hasn't been a big deal in the past because I would just get trims but this time I went short. When my medium/long hair is subjected to the humidity it goes a little wavy and it is okay. When my short hair is subjected to the humidity, the nice smooth look I had in Utah goes all tweaky. It flips where it should be smooth and goes limp where it is supposed to have volume. Oh well...

2 - I bought some apple juice for my family (especially Eden) to enjoy. I looked over my options and then noticed that there was a brand that was 100% juice - not from concentrate. It was also a good price. I bought it, took it home, and then gave Eden a sippy cup full of it at lunch. At dinner Phil said, "oooh, apple juice!" (we don't have juice much) and so I put it on the table for dinner. Phil filled his glass. About half way through the meal I noticed some smaller print on the label. This is what then transpired...

Heidi: "How can apple juice have fiber?"
Phil: "Fiber? I don't think it can."
Heidi: "It says it right there, 'A Good Source of Fiber.'"
Phil: "No way."
Heidi: (looking at some even smaller print) "Oh, they've added fiber - like Metamucil or something."
Phil: "No way."
Heidi: "This could be bad, Eden had about 6 ounces today."
Eden: as if on cue - makes all kinds of stomach-churning-digestion-working sounds.

Let's just say the diaper was full, the guts clean.

And now you know too...

She crawls! and other Eden news

On Sunday, Eden got up on all fours (she's been doing this for quite a while now), looked over her left shoulder to make sure Phil was watching then over her right shoulder to make sure I was watching and then took off crawling (she hasn't been doing this). She is enjoying her new-found mobility. We now find her sitting up in bed (usually when she is supposed to be sleeping). Her vocabulary includes: baby, mama, dada, pretty (priiiteee), ball, and bye-bye. She cracks us up!

Monday we had a busy, busy day. Eden and I drove to Sam's Club (about an hour away) to stock up on groceries. Then we had to go to WalMart (sorry Layne and Morgann) to buy what wasn't at Sam's. It was a full day of shopping and Eden was a trooper. As I got her out of the buggy (Alabaman for shopping cart) I asked her if she wanted to dance. Sometimes she wants to dance and sometimes she doesn't. She is very clear in her own mind what she does and doesn't want. When the answer is "yes" she wraps her cute, pudgy fist around my thumb and we twirl around like we are the next contestant to get voted off "Dancing with the Stars." The answer was "YES!" and we twirled around the car for a moment. She was thrilled and enthusiastically wrapped her arms around my neck and gave me a big hug and kiss. Then (and this is the really impressive part) she willingly got into her car seat. It was as though she was saying, "mom, this has been a busy day, thanks for taking out a little time to just be silly with me."

I love my girl!