Here Comes Trouble

Well, it appears that it's time to take our baby proofing to the next level.

And in case you're wondering about the blur in the third picture, that's Maggie, grinning while wagging her little index finger at me and saying, "No, no, no."

I can't imagine where she's heard that before.

There's More

In addition to all of the previously mentioned things that bring tears to my eyes, I can now honestly say that I also cry at early morning breakfasts sponsored by the Corridor Business Journal at which I've suddenly learned that Chris' company has been named the fastest growing company in the Iowa City/Cedar Rapids corridor this year.


I will also admit that before the breakfast began our friend Brad (a reader of this blog) asked if I was going to get emotional when Chris went up on stage to accept the award. At that point we only knew that Chris' company was in the Top 20, but had no idea of the actual rank.

I assured Brad that no, I would not cry. My calm, cool business side would triumph. No tears from this lady.

Clearly I do not know myself at all.

Naked Babies in the Bathtub

A brief moment of happiness in an otherwise lousy day for Ben in which he purposefully ruined three of Cate's headbands, peeled strips off the door between the house and the garage, threw rocks at our neighbor, chased another neighbor with a plastic hammer, and left our yard without permission.

By 4:45 pm I had exhausted every disciplinary tool in my arsenal. I calmly explained why certain actions were unacceptable. I sent him to time-out. I sent him to time-out again. I made him apologize. I yelled. I took away marbles. I threatened.

And finally, at 4:45 pm, I made him come inside.

This, of course, made all three of my kids unhappy. And clearly I was already unhappy.

And so tonight I am thankful for bathtubs and early bedtimes. Both of which ensured that we ended the day on a happier note.

Be Careful What You Wish For

A few months ago I wrote about how I wanted to plant a (very!) small garden this year.

By the time May rolled around Chris and I were pretty sure that said garden was not going to happen. We told each other that maybe we'd try to get something planted next year, when the kids were a little older.

Then, on Saturday, we went to Lowe's.

The minute we walked in the store we saw little individual containers containing everything needed to grow one little watermelon (or tomato or pumpkin) plant. And for $0.97 this was a garden that I could fully support.

We tossed them into the cart.

A few aisles later we saw Sesame Street gardening kits. These were only $5.99 and each kit had everything one would need to grow six watermelon, tomato or pumpkin plants.

Even better, I thought. Still inexpensive, but definitely manageable. Cate and Ben would have a few more plants to care for but this tiny garden would still fit easily on a window sill.

We returned the individual containers and tossed the Sesame Street gardening kits into the cart.

A few aisles later we saw a little raised bed gardening kit, complete with everything one would need to have a 4 ft.-by-4 ft. garden patch.

By now our minds were brimming with fantasies of sunflowers. Green peppers. Roma tomatoes. Onions.

We would make salads. Gazpacho. Salsa. The kids would nibble tomatoes right off the vine. We could grow our own Halloween pumpkins.

And then...to make a long story short, the 4x4 kit was too flimsy. And small. So Chris made a late night trip back to Lowe's to get lumber to make a 6 ft-by-6 ft garden plot, which he put together in the dark.

Immediately after breakfast this morning we started planting. Luckily Cate had seen something on PBS about how to plant a garden so she could tell me what to do. (What a fool I was not to let her watch tv until she was 2...rest assured I won't make that same mistake with Maggie).

Under her direction we planted: tomatoes, red and green peppers, green onions, jalepenos, banana peppers, pumpkins, watermelon, and sunflowers.

The kids are giddy with excitement. Every time we come home they want to check their garden to see if anything has sprouted.

I am a little terrified. I know absolutely nothing about gardening. We have killed every houseplant we've ever owned. We've seen bunnies, deer and even a fox stroll through our yard on occasion.

All of this does not bode well for our little garden.

Even though the odds are stacked against this little garden, the kids are happy. And I am too. We've created something that wasn't there yesterday and, with any luck, we'll actually grow something.

And, with even more luck, my kids will actually eat what we grow.

(Dirt? Yuck!!!)


(Ta Da!)

Cate's Final Preschool Concert

I didn't cry at my own wedding. Or even when my children were born.

But I do cry at other people's weddings, even when watching the (replayed!) footage of the royal wedding. I cried when we brought Cate home from the hospital. I got teary eyed at Kindergarten round-up. Once I caught a re-run of "The Biggest Loser" while on the treadmill and had to change the channel because I felt so sorry for the contestant who got sent home.

And, on Friday, my eyes welled up with tears as Cate's preschool class sang "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" at her final preschool concert.

Next stop: Kindergarten.

Looking on the Bright Side

A few nights ago we were reading "Hansel and Gretel" before bedtime when Cate asked, "What's a stepmother?"

"Well," I replied. "If I died and Daddy got married to someone else then that person would be your stepmother."

Cate was quiet for a minute and I wondered if I perhaps should not have even mentioned the possibility that mothers sometimes die.

My fears about opening a Pandora's box of questions about death, heaven, and funerals were put to rest when Cate asked, "So then I would get to be the flower girl, right?"

Monkey See, Monkey Do

Cate attempts to teach Maggie how to do a somersault.

Happy Mother's Day!

Party, Party, Party!

This weekend we celebrated Cate's 5th birthday with her grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, and two great-grandma's.

Then we headed to the dance studio for a party with Cate's friends from preschool.

Maggie was thrilled since she's spent every Thursday morning for the past nine months with her face pressed up against the one-way window at the studio, plotting how to get into the class with all of the "big girls." Even Ben joined in on the princess choreography.

By 5pm on Saturday night, Cate, Ben and their cousin Ava were exhausted from all the fun.

Guilty

I put the gum on the third shelf of the pantry, within easy reach of Cate and Ben but much too far away for Maggie to reach.

Or so I thought.

Foolishly, it never occurred to me that she would put out the bottom shelf and use it as a step stool.

Apparently she likes cinnamon gum. And the wrappers.

War Stories

Veterans exchange war stories. New moms exchange stories of labor and delivery. Students exchange stories of wild nights at downtown bars.

My kids? My kids exchange stories about spit.

Yesterday we were driving in the car and I overheard Ben tell Cate, "One time when I laid upside down in my bed and I spitted, it went up my nose."

They laughed uproariously. Good times, I tell you. Good times.

Iowa Native

I'm always looking for creative ways to entice the kids to eat their veggies. I had low expectations when I stumbled across the Bird's Eye Steam Fresh Mini Sweet Corn at Hy-Vee last week.

How could frozen sweet corn ever hope to compete with Iowa sweet corn picked fresh in August?

I will admit, it was not the best sweet corn I've ever had. The flavor was actually pretty good but the texture (a little too soggy for me) left a little to be desired.

Cate and Ben, avid sweet corn eaters, immediately dug in, complimenting my cooking (or microwaving, in this case).

I foolishly assumed that Maggie would be content to nibble a few kernels that I cut off the cob.

I was wrong.

As soon as she saw Cate and Ben holding their ears of corn, Maggie wanted to follow suit.

As this picture indicates, her first experience with sweet corn was a good one.

Sweet Maggie Maggerson

May Day!

And a great excuse to "give away" some of our Easter candy!