What We've Been Up To

If the real Mother Nature accidentally fell off the roof, and I were appointed the new Mother Nature in her place, (think The Santa Claus but with less Tim Allen and more frizzy, red hair...)  my first task would to make it a steady 65-70 degrees in Massachusetts for 11 months out of the year.  Only eleven because I'd miss snow on Christmas.  December would be white and magical, and as soon as January hit...it would all melt away.  

In real life my powers over the weather only extend so far as to shake an angry fist at the sky every three days when it drastically changes from hurricane, to blizzard, to sweltering heat, and back again.  And why, oh why, do I still not own a raincoat?!     

There has been no fist shaking and Mother-Nature cursing this week, however, because the weather has been beooootiful!  We've been taking advantage as much as possible.  

 First, Nana and Pop came to visit over the weekend.  We stopped by a barn sale in town, where we won a quilt, and discovered this awesome tree along the way!

It's Winnie the Pooh's house!!  See the Mr. Sanderz sign an the hunny pot?  

The most interesting part is that the tree is completely hollow.  When you look up from inside Pooh Bear's house, this is what you see:  

Pretty awesome.  (Or perhaps the setting of a Stephen King novel...you be the judge.)  

Nana and Pop offered to watch Madeline for a few hours on Saturday afternoon, so Eric and I took advantage with a round of mini golf and some dinner.  We'd actually never been mini golfing together before.  He won, but I got a hole in one!  It was like a true, romantic high school date...  

Sunday morning we had breakfast with Nana and Pop, and let Madeline run up and down a big hill a few times before bidding them farewell.  

In the afternoon, I put together a fairy garden for Madeline.  She loves it.  She picked out the pink fairy herself and named her Flora.  She likes to stop by and move Flora around to new places.  This confused Eric quite a bit his morning when Flora had mysteriously moved.   

Meanwhile, we've been taking lots of walks around the neighborhood after school this week, and we even broke out the grill for the first time on Monday night.  

Ah, Mother Nature, you done good.  Keep up the good work!  

The Many Faces of Madeline Lee

Sometimes when Madeline watches a movie, I like to watch the faces she makes. (Mummas are sometimes creepy that way.) 

Apparently there's a lot going on during the last five minutes of Beauty and the Beast.  

Living Room Progress

Some people might refer to me as stubborn.  I prefer to think of myself as determined.  (Tomato, To-mah-to.)  Therefore, I had a specific idea and look in mind for our living room built-ins that, for a very long time, I was unwilling to budge on. Yet, after months of hemming and hawing, pouting, and raised-eyebrow glaring, Eric got his way.  Apparently, I married someone who can out-stubborn me.  I'm not sure that was a wise choice.  Good thing I think he's cute.  

My original plan meant that the two of us would be building our own shelving system almost from scratch.  However, my dreams of beautiful, custom-fit cabinetry boiled down to a gigantic headache for Eric.  Cause let's be honest, he would have done most of the work, and I would have done most of the whining.  And after seeing a set of pre-built cabinets at IKEA that were not only much easier than what I had planned, much less expensive than what I had planned, but also the perfect dimensions for our wall...he finally won me over.  I must say, I didn't go down easy.  There were words.

They may not be what I had envisioned, but I love them anyhow.  I guess he was maybe, sorta, a little bit right.

This is what this wall looked like before we added the cabinets...

Then we assembled a lot of pieces...

Our wall is not flat or straight.  Nothing in our house is.  In fact, there's an one-inch-deep bulge in the middle of it.  We think that's where the fireplace used to be.

Eric screwed a cleat into the studs, and then secured the cabinets to the wood to ensure that everything lined up evenly.

Ensuring that everything was level in our crooked, crooked house was a process.  Eric had to undo some work he had very carefully done to make sure there was enough clearance for the upper most cabinets to fit under the ceiling.  Our floor slopes down about an inch from left to right.  Luckily, those Scandinavian geniuses over at IKEA created adjustable legs to help with the process.   

We were able to assemble and secure the cabinet frames during the first day while Madeline was at school.   

And on the second day, we were able to add the doors, hardware and shelves.  

Our knobs are from Home Depot.  I love them.

We now have more storage than we know what to do with.  Madeline's toys are below, and our DVDS are above.   

And there's a lot of white space between those books.  Plenty of room to add to our collection over the next few years!  

Spring Break

As soon as Madeline was excused from dinner tonight, she went racing to the bottom of the stairs and started crying, "I tired!  I want to go upstairs and take a nap!"

I couldn't have said it better myself, Maddie Bear.  The first day back to work after a week of relative laziness and bliss is rough.

(Of course, now it's over an hour past her bedtime, and she's still babbling away in her bed trying to trick us into coming upstairs to change her diaper.  Can't win.)  

Spring break is a big tease.  The end of the school year is close enough to want to be done, but realistically, we still have a lot of work left to do.  God, it's so tough being a teacher and having so much vacation time, isn't it?  (I kid.  Don't hate me.)

In the wake of the tragedy in Boston, break wasn't as upbeat as it usually is, but it was nice to lay low for a change.

Last week we...did big projects around the house, went for a walk in the woods, played on playgrounds, duck wrangled in Boston, tried out beds at Ikea, visited the beach, had lunch dates with family, sewed curtains, built living-room forts, failed at both baking cupcakes and bread, ate crab rangoon, watched the news until we wanted to scream, and finally watched Les Miserables and The Life of Pi (both were good in case you were wondering).

Just two more months till warm summer days!

Maddie Bear Says...

Dear Madeline: April, 2013

Dear Madeline,

Being your Mumma has made me so much more sensitive to the tragedies in our world.  Sometimes it feels like one big, hopeless mess.  But at the same time, you are such a ball of positive light that being your Mumma has also made me more certain of the goodness and love that exists around us every moment of every day.  I hope as you grow older, you can hang on to that sunny disposition of yours in spite of whatever hardships cross your path.

You are such a funny, silly girl.  Tonight you lifted your shirt up to your armpits and did a version of your very own belly dance.  You think it's hilarious to press your forehead to mine so that our eyes blur into one.  You've taken to mooing like a cow for no reason at all.  In the car the other day you told us we should buy a dog and name it Mumma.  You are continuously making us crack up.  

I thought that you had a pretty good vocabulary, but about two weeks ago something clicked, and now you are speaking like a real little kid.  You can explain your reasoning and thought process to us now, which is beyond awesome.

On the way to school this morning, you told us that you remembered going to school with Dada where you watched Mickey Mouse, which was, "so, so scary."  That incident was last summer.  Dada took you to work to set up his room and let you watch Fantasia.  You did not like it.  

Meanwhile, on the ride home from school today you told me that your friend had a pink letter D on her shirt, and that you liked it so much because you love the color pink.  I guess she had blue and yellow letters on her shirt too, but the pink letter D was the best.  

Then in a sad voice you told me that the same friend told you not to wear the color pink anymore last week.  (We've heard this story a lot in the past few days. I guess the schoolyard drama has begun?) I reminded you that you were wearing a pink sweatshirt today, and that you can wear whatever color you want.  That seemed to cheer you up.  You started talking about how both you and your friend were wearing pink today.  "We were the same, Mumma!"

I'm a bit worried that these "fights" with your friends over the clothing you wear is a sign of things to come.  You are quite the vain little nugget.  It's not just that you love staring in the mirror at yourself.  It's the way you make precious little faces at your reflection.  It's as if you're saying, "Hello there, beautiful.  How you doin' this fine afternoon?"  

Of course, you are two, and therefore, not every moment is sunshine, lollipops, and rainbows.  For example, you cried tonight because I made you dinner.  My bad...thought you were hungry.  You pinched me at bedtime this week...twice.  We also caught you muttering, "That's stupid," under your breath.  And you're getting quite bossy.  We're working on manners.

Sometimes trudging up the stairs for the third time in one evening to sing you a lullaby yet again, or to put your pants back on, or to stop you from jumping on the bed is exasperating.  I'm not always patient, but I try to be.  You make life so much better, and I never take that for granted.  

I love you, little bear.

Love,
Mumma

Boston

Eric and I go into the city to watch the Boston Marathon every year.  We brought Madeline with us for the first time today.

We walked through Beacon Hill to the Common and Public Garden.  There, we played on the playground, ran around in the grass, visited the Make Way for Ducklings statues, rode the Swan Boats, and almost took a ride on the carousel. (Madeline didn't dig it, so we got off.)

By the time we were finished, Madeline was cold and hungry.  Eric suggested a new restaurant he'd heard of, (he had me at poutine) so we went to get lunch.  Madeline fell asleep on the way.  

After our bellies were full, we decided to call it a day and head home.

On the T, I remarked, "We never made it over to the marathon."  Eric shrugged.  "That's okay,"  he replied.  "She was tired."  

My heart and prayers go out tonight to everyone involved in this afternoon's horrible events.

And in this crazy, often sad, world where nothing seems to make sense, all I can do is hang on to moments like this...

...and hope the good continues to outweigh the bad.  

Vacation Friday

Usually on a Friday before vacation, I'm filled with the kind of bubbly, positive energy that makes people with normal jobs want to punch all teachers in the face.   But this dreary, sleeting afternoon, I dragged myself over the threshold by the tips of my fingernails, hair akimbo, sweatpants at the ready, the local pizza delivery place on standby.  It was a rough week.  I need a break.  Everyone at my school needs a break.

We experienced a tragedy at work this week.  Loss of this kind is never easy, but it's particularly difficult watching a group of kids trying to grapple with the aftermath.

Meanwhile, on a much lesser note, after a long, emotionally-draining day at work on Wednesday, I entered Madeline's daycare to find her screaming hysterically from the safety of one of her teacher's arms.  They told me that she had started crying in her sleep, and they were unable to calm her down.  It sounded like she had a nightmare, but Madeline's never reacted in that way toward a bad dream.

I got her home without tears, but as soon as we pulled in the driveway she began howling again.  Every two minutes, the cycle would repeat.  She'd press her face into my should, grimace, and begin howling uncontrollably.  It was the cherry on top of a completely shitty day.  (Forgive my language.)    

I was pretty freaked out by her behavior, and after hours of little sleep, little food, and a lot of turmoil, one's mind leaps to the worst conclusions.  So, when she rubbed her neck and jaw, I asked Eric, "What if she has meningitis?!"

In typical Eric fashion, he shrugged his shoulders, and calmly answered, "We'll bring her in to get checked out."  

A moment later Madeline calmed down enough to tell me her ear and mouth hurt.  It's so nice that she can communicate now!  Sure enough, the doctor confirmed that she had a pretty nasty ear infection on one side.  Poor baby.

Antibiotics are God's miracle.  And whoever decided to make the stuff pink is a genius, because if it's pink, Madeline will try it.  (That's also how we get her to eat salmon.)  After a few hours, she was back to her normal self.

So although it's been a rough week, and it's raining, and Madeline was sick...really, I just feel so, so lucky.

I'm lucky that my family is healthy, and that we can cuddle under a warm blanket to ride out this rain storm together.  I can put my little girl to bed tonight and kiss her in the morning.  I'm lucky to respect and admire my coworkers in times of both crisis and calm.  I'm lucky that I work with such amazing kids who made me so proud this week.  I'm blessed for the reminder that life is fragile, to appreciate it, and live it fully everyday.

Playing Favorites

It takes a special kind of person to share a house with two feisty redheaded girls.  Between my mood swings and Madeline's extreme toddler-ness, Eric is constantly kept on his toes.  Yet, in spite of the challenges we continuously throw at him, he manages to remain patient and understanding.  This is an especially difficult task considering that Madeline recently decided to completely reject all things Dada.

Madeline has always been a bit of a Mumma's girl.  When she's sick, tired, or just needs a cuddle, I'm her chosen person.  This is mostly a privilege I enjoy.  Who wouldn't want to be showered with pudgy, toddler lovin'?   Still, this also means that I'm the one she asks to change her diapers, or stay up with her in the middle of the night.  I don't pee alone very often these days.  She's a total ankle biter.  

While she doesn't display as much neediness in her affections toward Eric, she obviously loves her Dada too.  After all, he's the fun one who gets down on the floor to play Little People princesses with her every afternoon.

Therefore, the fact that she's become slightly hostile toward Eric over the past month, has been a bit of a mystery.

At first, Madeline wouldn't let him get her out of bed on the mornings he'd try to let me sleep in.  Instead, she'd opt to stay under the covers, singing at the top of her lungs, until I woke up to fetch her.  She's a creature of habit, and since I'm usually the one to get her up, we figured it had something to due with her wanting to stick to the normal routine.

Then, a few days before we left for Florida, Madeline told me, "I love just Mumma, not Dada."   Ouch.  This is a sentiment she has repeated to us both on several occasions no matter how much I praise Eric's amazing fathering capabilities.

This past week, she's told Eric to leave the room a few times.  She's pushed him away when he tries to pick her up. When she spotted him giving me a hug, she rushed over, wedged herself between us, and said, "Go away, Dada! My Mumma!"  Ouch.  Ouch. And Ouch.

Poor guy.  If Madeline were directing these feelings toward me,  I'd be on the floor crying and beating my fists in an epic display of sorrow.  It would be complete and utter devastation.  As it is,  Madeline's actions clearly bother Eric, but he hasn't collapsed into a puddle of self-pity...yet.

In an attempt to remedy this odd phase,  we've been building Eric up a lot.  He changes her diaper instead of me.  If she wants juice, he'll go get it.  He sat with us during bedtime this week and held her hand as she listened to stories.  I've been giving him more kisses and cuddles when she's around.

Eric took her out for a Dada-daughter play-date today.  I was worried she wouldn't want to go without me, but she was very excited to wave goodbye as she skipped out the door with Eric this morning.  He brought her to a local children's museum followed by lunch.  

It's a little early to tell, but it seems like operation: Love Your Dada is working.  This afternoon she was asking him to read to her instead of me, and she ran to him for a hug before bed.  Things seemed back to normal.  

I don't know what's caused this reaction.  Maybe she's feeling neglected by me, and wants more of my attention.  Maybe it's because Eric usually plays bad cop when it comes to things like taking her pacifier away.  Maybe it's because she's had a cold off and on since the middle of March.  Who knows?

Whatever the reason, I suspect it has something to do with her age and that she'll spread the love more evenly as she becomes more independent.  And someday, when she's a teenage redhead, she will most assuredly not like me more than Eric.

Prepare for epic pools of self-pity and sorrow coming from my direction in about thirteen years.

Goodbye, March

March was good.  We kicked off the month in the snowy mountains of New Hampshire, and finished it beside the palm trees of Florida.  Two vacations in one month?  My life is so glamorous sometimes that I just can't deal.

So long, March, 2013.

Meanwhile, I'm getting anxious for sunshine, gardening, rocking on the porch, and opening the windows for some fresh air.  Come on, April.  Do your thang.

** I'm using the PicCal app to track my daily photos.   I forgot the 4th.

Florida Photo Fun

We spent Easter weekend in Florida celebrating my grandmother's 85th birthday.  The weather was beautiful, we saw members of the family we don't get to see very often, and we enjoyed watching the little ones zipping around the beach.

I've been complaining about the cold since returning to sunny Massachusetts on Sunday afternoon.   Come on, spring.  Get a move on!  Florida can do it! Why can't you?