it's party time!

whoah there buckeroo, not so fast. Do you realize how challenging it is to plan a 2-year-old's party? Not hard, just...uh, well...not too easy.

yeah yeah, she's 2 and she doesn't care...blah blah blah.

but we're having kids of all ages over, and this party planner wants everyone to have a good time.

I was just looking through a toddler busy book for ideas and am having the most difficulty finding a suitable activity--something they can do without a whole lot of hand-holding (unless I assign a supervisor I guess); something safe of course (no beads or similar choking hazards); and something that won't create a big mess (paint's probably not the ticket here)...

anyone got any ideas?

I have one but. well, tell me what you think:
How about setting out pre-cut paper shapes (shamrocks and stuff--the party is actually on St. Patrick's day) with holes punched already--the kids can color them or put stickers on them, then string them on some shoelaces (or something) and make necklaces. We could use pasta tubes too, but are they considered a choking hazard? I'm thinking it could be fun for the 2-5 year olds, maybe even the 5-8 set.

I'm not sure what the 8-13 year olds can do. They might hate this idea.

and the teenagers...well, they surely don't want to do kid crafts. They probably don't want to be there at all! haha, i remember those days. =) Hmmm, maybe the teens can be the supervisors. that might be a great idea there!

so, what do you think? I obviously am no party expert and need all the help I can get.

relfection

Elizabeth's 2nd birthday is in a couple of weeks. It's amazing how quickly this year has passed. And she's such a little girl. I can no longer look at her and think "baby." She's Elizabeth, not "the baby" or whatever. I even find myself wanting to correct people from calling her a baby. To me, she's so clearly not one anymore.

I often think about having another baby. We want one, but when is a good time? I don't want to wait too long, but I also would like to be ready for another little hungry person around here.

Granted, I think I could manage a baby better all the time, especially now that Elizabeth is talking more. She understands so much of what is said and really tries to communicate. She says 2-3 word sentences, some of which is understood, but mostly not.

It's quite hysterical sometimes, trying to understand her. I love this: her Ds sound like Gs; and her Ls sound like Ys; so, the word "LID" for example comes out sounding like "YIG." I feel like I'm in the Da Vinci Code, the way I constantly have to decipher her. so funny.

At the same time though, I want to appreciate how very special and fleeting this time is, because sooner or later it will be gone and only a memory. And she will be talking up a storm. in perfect english! and I will be left to think, "where's my cute little baby that said 'yig' and 'gaga'?"

I guess I'm going to have to get used to this sort of thing. Saying goodbye and hello to new stages, new abilities, and new growth. I'm constantly amazed at how much I've grown and learned since becoming a parent. so much that I can't imagine living an entire life not going through this wonderful journey.

What are some things you've learned (about yourself or life in general) as a parent that you never would have known otherwise? I'd love to hear your stories.

Arizona Trip

We're back from Arizona--visiting family. Lizzy was soo very good. She amazed me in that she took all her naps & was a very big girl on the plane. Even while we were constantly out and about, she was well behaved and sweet. It was a totally new surrounding and routine for her and she just adapted beautifully!

What I keep hearing is "fawawa." Which in babyspeak means: I fell down in the water. Yeah! While out picnicking by the colorado river, she got excited about something she saw (an underwater rock?) and ended up falling down at the riverside and getting all wet--soaking, in fact! The water was cold--snow melt--so she shivered and screamed until I finally had her clothes all changed. Poor baby. It must have really left an impression.

I also keep hearing her say names of our family
"shue" (sue)
"beel" (bill)
"geh gamma" (great grandma)
"buggah" (buddy)
"ellah" (ellie)

I'm glad that she seemed to really enjoy the trip and remembers the people and events so well. It just shows how much she is growing cognitively.

Sleep, Eat, Sleep

Lizzie is much better--no vomiting, yay! But she's still not herself. After eating a little oatmeal for breakfast and drinking lots of Pedialyte, she cozied up next to me on the sofa and fell asleep watching a random episode of Barney. (I couldn't take another Wiggles epi) She slept cuddled next to me for over an hour, then for another hour after I escaped her clutches. It felt like she was an infant again: I watched goofy daytime tv (yay food network! btw, TLC has SO MANY baby shows now--a baby story, bringing home baby, etc--do people really watch these all day long?) while she just napped on the sofa. Just like old times.

As the day slipped by, she ate more food and seemed to feel better and better. She skipped her regular afternoon nap though, and at about 5:15pm she konked out on her bed. I wasn't about to protest. She needs sleep.

The one amazing thing that happened today is:
She pooped in her potty for the first time! Wasn't the best...uhh...offering (coming off of stomach flu and all) but of course I cheered her on.

She amazes me that even while she's sick and not feeling 100% she's still trying to use the potty and being the all-around wonderful toddler that she is.

That's my girl!

My Poor Baby

Lizzie's sick. She has severe vomiting and hasn't been able to hold anything down since last night, not even water. She's fine otherwise: no fever, no pain, etc. so I'm thinking it must be some kind of bug or food poisoning.

This morning it seemed that she was over it, but then...not. One minute she was fine and then....blacgh. I was trying to get her to the bathroom when she spewed all over me, on my clothes, down my neck and back...let's just say it brought me to a whole new level of mothering. I was grossed out, definitely, but isn't it weird how your baby can do something like that to you and it's all okay? Anyone else...forget it.

That said, this mommy feels pretty helpless with the inabilty to instantly take away her discomfort. But this kind of ailment is supposed to be over in a day or two, so we're just laying low and giving her a sip of water every so often. Very difficult to hear her ask for food though! I try to explain it to her that we need to wait, but that doesn't help, obviously. Plus, she doesn't really understand.

Guess we'll be doing tv most of the day. Maybe she'll end up loving football (via super bowl). Either that or she'll get a heavy dose of Wiggles. I'm guessing the latter.

No Pie!

All day long this is what I heard from my little darling.

No Pie! ( but it sounds like Nooo Piiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii!)

She LOVES this mother goose rhyme and even acts out the kitties when they "meow, meow meow!" So all day long at totally random moments she'd bust out with "no piiiiiiiiiiii!" and I just had to crack up hysterically.

Remember this one?

Three little kittens, they lost their mittens
and they began to cry,
Oh mother dear, we greatly fear
Our mittens we have lost!
What! Lost your mittens! You naughty kittens!
Then you shall have no pie!
meow, meow, meow!
No, you shall have no pie!

In our book the mother cat looks terribly mean too! When the kitties find their mittens in the next verse, Lizzy will get up and go to her drawer and "find" her own mittens, bringing them to me, just positively beaming. At which point I just fall over from all of her cuteness.

As her grammie always says, "she is such a character!"
That she is, that she is.
And she shall have some pie. but only if it has fruit in it.