Hey Maggie: You Don't Have to Be Barbie!

Good morning, folks.  Grab some coffee – it’s rant time again.

The last time we had a “book review” sort of post, we looked at the book Go the [Bleep] to Sleep by Adam Mansbach. The post put forth two competing views on the fairly controversial book (I saved my own for the comments), and the lively discussion that ensued was quite interesting.

This time, however, I’m not going to let the discussion begin without telling you exactly where I stand:  I am appalled by the concept of this book.

Trying to Matter

While I was distracted by storm preparation this weekend, a milestone passed and I didn’t even realize it until this morning, now that the fog is clearing.

Our blog has published over 100 posts!

This is something I feel proud of because I have often asked myself over the last few years whether the things I am doing matter. Do you ever ask yourself that question?

Be Prepared, Not Scared

I'm writing late on Sunday night, when weather conditions here are mercifully a lot calmer than I thought they'd be.  We were lucky not to feel much of Hurricane Irene's wrath, but many of my friends and relatives in other states weren't so lucky, with power outages and property damage and many other inconveniences.

Gearing up for this storm, I felt prepared on most basic levels, but found it difficult to prepare Anna for what potentially could be a scary experience.  Granted, the toddler level of understanding is evolving, but limited, so there was only so much I could say to help her know what to expect without freaking out.

Stay Safe!

I just wanted to wish all my East Coast loved ones a SAFE weekend as Hurricane Irene hits today and tomorrow. I hope you all escape the storm with no problems! 

Outer Banks, NC (Photo credit: Jim Lo Scalzo/ EPA)

Anna was a great little assistant last night, helping me with putting away all of our patio furniture and other yard stuff that needed to be secured. I think she's a little scared about the storm, as I'm sure some of your kids are, but hopefully it won't be too bad. We'll use it as an excuse for some extra snuggle time and try to stay cozy. Be back soon!

Friday Fun: Adventures with Wildlife

Like many kids, Anna loves animals – or shall I say, “aminals.” (We're still working on that one.) Not only do we look up various creatures on the iPad every chance we get, but we’re also constantly on the lookout for them when we’re out and about.  Here are some of the ones we’ve encountered recently!

You Can't Make This Stuff Up....

As a follow-up to today's earlier post, "Music Ed 101," I thought I'd share with you some additional information about Stevie Wonder's "whereabouts" (according to Anna).  This was our conversation this morning:

Anna:   I want to visit Stevie Wonder.
Me:     Well, we don't know where he lives, and besides, famous people don't tend to like it when people just show up at their houses.
Anna:   He lives in 'Arctica.  [pauses, thinking hard]  There are no Muppets there.  So let's go see Stevie Wonder first, then go see Kermit after.

There you have it: in case any of you were wondering, supposedly Anna's favorite artist is in Antarctica, in the event you want to don your best cold weather gear and find him. Hopefully he won't blame me when everyone shows up at his house all at once! LOL.

Music Ed 101

“Can we watch a Stevie Wonder video again, Mom?  Can we, can we?”

I love that kid.

And clearly we’re doing something right because she has excellent musical taste!  I started the musical indoctrination early. Anna’s nighty-night mix includes the following:

•  Here Comes the Sun – The Beatles 
•  Your Song – Elton John
•  Just the Way You Are – Billy Joel
•  My Cherie Amour – Stevie Wonder
•  Peaceful, Easy Feeling – The Eagles
•  Blessed – Elton John
•  Ventura Highway – America
•  Is This Love – Bob Marley & The Wailers
•  Over My Head – Fleetwood Mac
•  You Are the Sunshine of My Life – Stevie Wonder

      And that's only a portion of the list; there are over 20 songs. I’ve been singing many of these songs to Anna at night since she was a newborn, while rocking or dancing her to sleep.  We started mostly with classical, and then some jazz – Ella Fitzgerald singing “Cheek to Cheek" and Miles Davis playing “Bye Bye Blackbird” were early favorites.  But when our bedtime ritual became longer and longer, I thought some soothing and mellow classic rock/pop songs would be appropriate.  Thus, this playlist was born.

Attack of the Giant Seagulls!

Whoosh!  The menacing shadow loomed overhead, coupled with the ominous sounds of flapping wings and squawking.  They’re baa-aaack! 

This weekend on the beach we faced down some scary predators and lived to tell the tale! That’s right, folks, we survived….the attack of the giant seagulls.

Photo credit: nothingboy

Mouthy kids? No Way!

Does your kid talk back?  I certainly did, and I can only imagine what awaits me courtesy of karma when Anna gets older! They start young, but an article (really a Q&A) I read online today addressed the issue re: older kids. So if you're dealing with this at home, please check it out!

The Outsiders

"As around the sun the earth knows she's revolving

And the rose buds know to bloom in early May

Just as hate knows love's the cure

You can rest your mind assure

That I'll be loving you always."

--- "As,"  Stevie Wonder

It happened again this weekend.

I went to a wedding with Heidi. It was a beautiful wedding, and we enjoyed having the time together with other couples to just relax and hang out at the reception.

Kids & Bedtime

I receive regular parenting tips and other information via email.  Today's message included a link to an article about bedtimes written by someone who lets her kids stay up later than many kids their age.  I always start Anna's bedtime ritual early (like around 7:30) but it's a good hour or two before she's actually asleep.  Sometimes it's tempting to let her just stay up until she crashes instead of enduring bedtime struggles, but of course, I don't want her to be too tired the next day, so I usually try very hard to get her to sleep.

Please check out the article and share your thoughts about early vs. late bedtimes!

Multitasking: It Ain't What It Used to Be

It was Friday afternoon, around 3:30. I had been gone all morning for Kelsey’s honors program orientation at college. 

Anna and I sat in the waiting room while the “car guy” was changing my oil and looking into an issue with my check engine light.  Normally, this would be sheer playtime with Anna, but noooo. Not this time.

Quotable Quotes of the Week

As another fun weekend with the Pie begins, I thought I’d share some of our quotable quotes this week!  I’d love to hear your kids’ gems too – please share them in the comments or contact me about a guest post!  admin@mylifewithpie.com

Llama Llama Goes to Work with Mama

As I've mentioned before, Anna LOVES the series of books about lovable little Llama Llama by Anna Dewdney.  Anna almost always brings her snuggly llama friend to school for nap time. 

Yesterday, however, she decided to give Curious George and Minnie Mouse a turn accompanying her to day care.  Anna was a little worried about how the llama would feel not going to school, so she told me I needed to take him to the office with me.  To assure her that he had a good time, I decided to document Llama Llama's lawyer day!

"Vacation at Home": Yeah Right!

So-called “staycations” are becoming more and more popular these days, especially as our economic woes make it more difficult for many of us to travel.  This week, our office administrator is vacationing from home. And that got me thinking about how, in my view, the “staycation” is not really the relaxing experience it’s intended to be.

Don’t get me wrong, I love lazy days at home when I can read the paper, snack, watch movies, etc.  Sadly, my time for such pursuits is extremely limited.  Given this, you’d think I’d be really psyched for the chance to spend a week off from work at home, right?

How to Save a Life

On the heels of yesterday's post about near-miss abductions comes an amazing story from New Mexico about another terrifying near-miss that occurred in broad daylight. This time, though, it was a near-miss thanks to the heroic actions of the victim's neighbor.  Please read the story here.

In short, a 6-year-old girl was grabbed and thrown into a van right in her Albuquerque neighborhood. She had been walking home from a neighbor's house. Miraculously, two neighbors witnessed the kidnapping and one of them, Antonio Diaz Chacon, got in his truck and chased the kidnapper, who fled after crashing his van.  Diaz Chacon was able to rescue the little girl and the kidnapper was later apprehended.

Photo credit:  AP Photo/Susan Montoya Bryan

This shows all of us that vigilance is SO important.  It's not only up to our kids to remember to make safe choices, and up to us to teach them - it's also up to us to keep our eyes open. Watch your kids - and watch out for other children too.  Here, this girl's wonderful neighbor is a hero. Undoubtedly, he is the reason she's alive and well today.  You never know when simply being aware of your surroundings - and, of course, being brave - could make all the difference in the world.

Monkey See, Monkey Do!

Kids are copycats.  It’s just natural.  Half the time, I don’t even realize Anna is absorbing words and phrases of ours until I hear them repeated back to me.  I know she didn’t come up with “I’m making coffee for my presentation” on her own. (Hilarious, though, isn’t it?!)

So it’s no surprise that, sponges as they are, our kids pick up behaviors and language from their friends as well.  My Pie goes to a wonderful day care and I am so happy she’s making lots of friends.  She bonds equally well with boys and girls, which is good, and I know all of her friends by name.

On a Lighter Note....

Since I started off the day with my very serious (but important!) post about stranger danger, I thought I owed it to you all to post something funny to close out the day.  I'm always posting the funny things Anna says, especially on Fridays  - and I'm still waiting to hear your kids' funny quotes too! *cough cough*  So today, I found a website full of the wit and wisdom of little ones.  Please check it out here, and enjoy!

It Only Takes a Second

Okay, I know we got off to a humorous start this week, but this is too important to save for another time.

I recently wrote about child safety issues in the context of our discussion about the parenting skills article.  In response to that, a friend shared a story with me on Facebook – a story that has been at the forefront of my mind ever since. Now, I want to share it with you.

Attack of the Post-It Notes

One thing I have always prided myself on is my good memory.  I have always been able to recall dates, specific details of important memories, to-do lists, you name it.

Until now, that is.

When I was a child, I noticed that my father needed a little help remembering things. His solution was to place post-it notes in his car. They started off near the stereo, then near the gearshift, and finally they migrated to his steering wheel. At the height of his post-it mania, they were pretty much all over the driver’s side interior.

A Song for my Girls

I loved this song when I was younger, simply for its music. But I recently heard it again and, now that I’m a parent, found it to be a very sweet, very meaningful wish for one’s children. So this is for my girls, Kelsey and Anna, with love.

Forever Young

By Rod Stewart

Friday Fun: Anna's Snuggly Friends - A Photo Essay

I was a collector and hoarder of stuffed animals as a child. I absolutely loved them and kept many of them through my teenage years. So, understandably, I get it that Anna loves stuffed, snuggly friends and I often buy them for her.

Perhaps this is my little reminder to myself NOT to buy Anna any more, at least for the time being, because it’s clear she already has more friends than any kid needs.  Here are some of Anna’s friends in these first 3 years:

The Gender Divide, Part 2: Superhero Butt

In a previous post, The Gender Divide, I discussed the sharply delineated pink and blue aisles at toy stores and the resulting, prevailing attitudes that girls should like dolls and princesses and boys should like cars and trucks and soldiers.

Now, with the advent of intense potty training, we’ve hit a new iteration of this problem:  big kid underwear.

Mommy, I Pooped!

Certain phrases induce joy for obvious reasons.

“You’ve been accepted into Law School!”

“I’m giving you a raise.”

“The job is yours if you want it.”

“Congratulations, you passed the Bar exam!”

Hearing or reading each of these announcements understandably made me happy. These were goals I had worked hard over the course of many years to achieve.

"Where Children Sleep"

Today I came across an article by Kerri MacDonald, entitled, "Where Children Sleep," which discusses a new book of the same title by James Mollison. According to the article, the book is essentially a photo essay, the premise of which is that children's bedrooms can reveal a lot about their lives. 

I Said No, I Said!

Raise your hands if your child’s most recent favorite word is “no.”  And I don’t just mean a simple, polite no, I mean a raging scream, i.e. “NOOOOO!!”

“No” is the thing Anna says most often these days, with “I love you!” coming in at a close second.  The thing I say most often is “I love you,” followed by, “Be careful with your body!”  We are creatures of habit, so it makes sense that we have particular phrases or words we often repeat without even thinking.

Introverts Unite!

This is sort of an ironic title, given that we introverts aren't exactly the most comfortable in large crowds - even if they are comprised of our fellow introverts!

I came across an article by Jonathan Rauch in The Atlantic called "Caring for Your Introvert" - check it out if you have a moment. It's a little tongue-in-cheek vindication for those of us who are labeled "loners" and cause people to worry simply because we're not as gregarious as other people.

Parting Is Such Sweet Sorrow...

I hate day care goodbyes!   That pretty much sums it up – you can stop reading now.

Just kidding!

This is a phenomenon that every parent who puts a child in day care experiences from time to time:  the melodramatic exit.  Some of us feel awful enough that we have to leave our sweet little ones elsewhere all day while we work, so a parting that has the feel of a bad movie doesn’t exactly put us in the best frame of mind for the day ahead.

Reading Adventures with Llama Llama

Our recent guest post about family literacy got me thinking about reading routines.  We parents often find ourselves in "reading ruts," given that our kids settle on a favorite book or two and want to hear them over and over (and over and over and over.....) again. This certainly is normal and I enjoy reading Anna her favorite books.  The best part is her "reading" along because she knows the stories so well.

Master Frog Catcher!

My nephew Mason has found a new hobby:  frog catching!  When I was a kid, maybe 3 or 4 years old, I enjoyed trying to catch frogs too, but my efforts weren't nearly as sophisticated.  They consisted of crouching in my backyard with my dad and seeing if we could fool one into hopping into our hands.  The one time this happened, it peed on us! Then it made a hasty exit. I believe that was the end of my frog catching career.

Mason, however, is 7.  He's got a handy net to help him out.  He trolls a pond near his house for giant frogs, which he apparently catches like a pro, and then releases them.

Biggest frog catch ever!

I can't wait to find out what interesting adventures Anna will have when she's a little bigger! What cool hobbies do your kids have?

Friday Fun: Who's The Boss??

Women run my life. I make no secret of this fact. What’s funny is that, lately, the smallest and youngest of them all has been the most vocal. As long as my mini-dictator is by my side, nothing can go wrong…right?

Enriching Lives through Family Literacy

Today, I am pleased to welcome out first guest writer:  my friend Brenda, who is a blogger and a parent herself. Below is her wonderful piece about family literacy.

It is hard for me to imagine a home without books in it.  From the time I can first remember, I have memories of being read to and of reading myself.  My constant and most favorite form of escape during my troubled teenage years was reading.  I was one of those children to fall easily into a made up world, so it was easy for me to implant myself into the made up world of books.  I remember being dropped off at the county library for hours.  I was never afraid; I loved being surrounded by thousands of books, and relished the idea of getting to read some of them in a quiet organized space.

Special Guest Post Tomorrow!

I just wanted to give everyone a preview of coming attractions!

My Life With Pie is lucky to have its first guest post, written by my friend Brenda, which will be published tomorrow.  Brenda is an amazing person - a devoted wife, mother of 3 girls, and a literacy advocate, among other things - and we're grateful that she has taken the time to share her thoughts about family literacy with us.  Please check out her blog, Becoming a Bridge, and make sure to read her post tomorrow.

If you would like to write a guest post too, please let us know at admin@mylifewithpie.com.

See you tomorrow!

Patience is Indeed a Virtue

I’m one of the most impatient people you’ll ever meet. When I want results, I want them yesterday. When I want to buy something, assuming it’s feasible to obtain it, I obsess about it until I get it, even if I end up feeling guilty later. I’m dead set on accomplishing my goals. I want ostensible evidence of my efforts ASAP. (Including a large number of followers for this blog, cough, cough.)

Having a child turns the instant gratification mentality upside down. In the past, I often wondered whether I’d be a suitable parent, given my general impatience and my need for order and cleanliness (if you haven’t already, check out “Moms in the Trenches” for more on that subject). I think Heidi had the same concerns, because I am driven and anal and particular about minutia almost as much as I am about what really matters – sad but true.

Laughter Is The Best Medicine!

If you're like me, this time of afternoon is tough. I get sleepy after lunch, and I know there are still roughly two hours between me and my couch. So, naturally, I troll the Internet for funny things to make me laugh and keep my mind engaged (what, work is supposed to do that?) - shh, don't tell.

If you're also craving a laugh right about now, check out "9 Hilariously Distressing Letters from Kids."  (One of these should look familiar.)  I can't wait until Anna gets old enough to write!  She can almost write her name already....look out, world!

Worrywart!

There are no worries like those that you have about your child.  Now, I’ve always had a predisposition for anxiety. I’m not just anxious about big things, but I’m also overly concerned about stupid little things. I am also restless and tense and wander around the house puttering when I can.

For example, tonight Anna has already fallen asleep and I am alone with her and my dog and cat and my thoughts for the evening. And now that I have the “me” time I occasionally, secretly crave….I really don’t know what to do with myself. So, instead of pacing around and cleaning, I decided to write – sorry to take my restlessness out on you in the cyber world!

Attitude of Gratitude

This is one of those posts I wish I'd written myself, but alas, I can't claim any credit whatsoever.  I read Jim Higley's post, "Living Life With a Sense of Awe," this morning and loved it, so I had to share it with you.

It's so true that anyone can teach kids how to say rote things, like "thank you," but imparting the meaning behind the words is another story. We do need to cultivate in our children - and ourselves - an attitude of gratitude that goes beyond mere good manners. This is worth a read.

Please check out the post and also Mr. Higley's blog, Bobblehead Dad.

Nasty Beach Lady

Well, it finally happened. I met a friend of Miserable Old Lady and Evil Restaurant Man: Nasty Beach Lady (or, for ease of reference, NBL).

Surely some of you have met her. She sprawls out in her chair, lounging and trying to read a novel and devouring chips while her unruly children run around like wild animals, nearly drowning in the lake and getting into fights with each other and with other kids. And she has the gall to get mad at them for it, screaming at them while a cigarette dangles from her lips. Given the sound of her voice, she’s probably got beer in her travel mug, but I can’t be sure.