Go-Go Mommy

Awesome Creation

Poppy said to me this morning: "Look mommy, I made God!"

What an inspirational way to start the day -does it get any better than this?!

Have a great weekend, everyone!

Not Many Years of This Left...

The other day Poppy had a question for me that came completely from left field:

"Mommy, how do you and Daddy know so much about so many things?" 

After I get done dancing a jig and patting myself on the back, I answered; "Well, daddy and I went to school for many many years.  We also learned a lot from our mommies and daddies, and we learned a lot, and still do, just by reading on our own."

Poppy; "Wow, so that's why."  (And I see the little wheels spinning in her head.)

Me to myself; "Hmm, I'd better get this conversation on the books so I can dust it off in about 10 years."  At least, I hope I have that long!

Princess Sweet Pea Update

Our trip to Michigan for the holidays was a little long and pretty cold, but very beneficial for Sweet Pea.  Although still "the shy one" of the two (it's hard not to be considered shy when compared to our outgoing Poppy), she really blossomed when it came to her vocabulary.  In fact, now that we are home again I'm wondering how I will get a word in edgewise once the two of them get going!

Her latest vocabulary:

"Ah do"  still means "excuse me."

"Soup, soup" when pointing at the tv translates into "I'd like to watch Ratatouille."

"Ciderellellella"  is, of course, "Cinderella"

"Ohhhweee" is reserved for when she thinks something is really great.

Everything else is pretty much normal:  requests like "park slide, park slide"  (she's a fast talker so most requests come in doubles), "milk or juice, milk or juice"  and the never ending "mama, mama, mama".  

And my MIL says that she still has a very "dirty laugh": the conspiratorial kind that just makes you want to join in too.  I love you Sweet Pea!

A Glimpse Inside or "From the Mouths of Babes"

Well the Go-Go household is finally getting settled in, I'm finally gaining some time to myself as I'm actually getting Poppy and Sweet Pea to nap AT THE SAME TIME (incredible, I know), which means I get to write again. YEAH!

It's not that there hasn't been anything to write about, oh, there has. I made some mean homemade vegetable soup from scratch and even took some photos to post with my off-the-cuff recipe (and for those of you who don't know me, recipes are my "bible" when I cook - in other words, I'm the like mad scientist who has to follow a specific formula to a "t" when I'm cooking and I NEVER ad-lib cooking) so it was very daring of me to create a recipe of my own to share.

Then there were the usual writing opportunities: write about moving our household again, write about finding new schools/new friends/new activities, write about this totally bizarre political season (NO WAY, NOT even going there), write about Sweet Pea now repeating nearly everything and even coming up with her own names for things, like a fish is a "BB BB" (maybe I'll still post on that one). Anyway, you get the picture.

Today's topic came to me today, however, as something that totally trumps whatever else I do or learn today on this Halloween, 2008.

Today I had the privilege of helping the teachers in Poppy's preschool class. While I was there, one of her teachers shared this story about Poppy and of course, since I cry at Hallmark commercials, I almost broke down right there and ran over and smooched Poppy all over her beautiful little face. Here's why:

Teacher: Oh, Poppy is certainly something. The things she says are just so amazing.

Me: Yes, she can be quite a handful at times.

Teacher: Oh, no. I wanted to tell you what I overhead her say to one of her friends in class. It was so sweet! You know "L" doesn't really talk much and is very quite. Well, Poppy asked her what she was going to be for Halloween and at first "L" didn't answer but Poppy asked again very politely and said "It's okay. You can whisper to me." So "L" whispered something to her and Poppy said; "I'm going to be a princess too! Which princess are you going to be?" "L" answered very quietly and Poppy said she couldn't hear then "L" whispered again. Then, oh, how do I put this? Poppy said, "You know "L" I can't wait until you are ready to use your loud voice and talk out loud because I bet when you do, your talking voice will be the most beautiful voice I've ever heard."

Me: Stunned silence. Tears welling up. Finally -

Me: Wow! She certainly is something.

I love you Poppy! Happy Halloween!

First Day of School! - Part 2

Here is our conversation as Poppy and I were getting ready to go to her second day of school on Friday morning:

Poppy:  Well mom, I have to tell you that there really is no dancing snake in a tutu at school.

Me:  Oh, really?

Poppy:  Yeah.  And there's no peacock shaking its feathers and Donut didn't talk either.

Me:  Oh, okay.  So why did you make up all that stuff? (I'd forgotten about the peacock.)

Poppy: Well, I just wanted to make you laugh.

I guess I got it wrong - maybe Poppy is going to be a comedian!

"First Day of School! First Day of School!"

Some of you may recognize that quote. It was shouted by the infamous fish Nemo as he bounced on his father to wake him up and head out for his big day.

Well, for the past 2 weeks, Poppy has been practicing that exact line and preparing to wake KB and I in the same enthusiastic manner. Unfortunately, this morning began with that line, but it was us saying it to her. Let's just say that she was so excited about her first day of preschool that she got to bed a bit past her bedtime; about 3 hours past her bedtime to be exact. I do have to give her credit though because she was still every bit as enthusiastic once the sleep wore off and with her head cleared, she realized that this was the day she had been waiting for.

So we got her dressed, had a quick and nutritious breakfast, and took the requisite "first day of school" photos of Poppy, Sweet Pea, KB & I. Then KB, Sweet Pea and I took her to her classroom with the same sort of "pomp and circumstance" that befits a first day and, lucky me, I did it all without shedding one tear. Maybe it's because I realize that it IS preschool after all and I'm probably just waiting for the official Kindergarten first day. No matter.

Here's the conversation when I picked her up:

Me: So did you have...(I got cut off)

Poppy: Mommy! Mommy! I had so much fun today!

Me: That's great. What did you do?

Poppy: Well, I petted a snake.

Me: You did? Was it real? (Wondering where they hid a snake in the room since I had just been there 2 nights ago for Parent Orientation.)

Poppy: Yes, and it had a tutu on and danced!

Me: It did? Wow, can you show me the snake when we go back to school?

Poppy: Sure. And I talked with Donut (the class bunny) and he answered me and said it was very nice to meet me!

Me: Wow! I didn't know Donut could talk.

Poppy: Well, he didn't but that's what he would have said if he could!

I'm thinking maybe Poppy is going to have a very good writing career of her own someday!

PS - I can't wait to see the "dancing snake!" Hope you send your "first day" stories. They are too precious not to share!

Life Lately

Sometimes life comes at you hard and fast. It definitely feels that way in my life right now. The girls are doing well, KB is working harder than ever, and I am getting back to work. Not that I haven't been working beyond my expectations as a SAHM, but now I am even busier after the girls go to bed with a new project that will move me into the "WAHM" and "mompreneur" categories.

It is exciting to be so close to having something that will enable me to exercise my professional muscle again; to put my "thinking cap" back on and get back to a sense of business acumen. I will share more on this later, but in the meantime, I'd like to share my latest life moments that make giving up the "crazy rat race" in the first place so worthwhile.

Today I saw:
-Sweet Pea so beautiful and innocent at 19 months. She has the cutest wispy hair that is too baby fine and sparse to take her for an actual haircut but is now so long in the back and at the sides that it's starting to curl in all directions. It looks sweetest head-on where it sometimes sticks straight out beyond her ears and catches the light making her look like a little mad scientist. Because of this trait, she has affectionately also become known as "Bibble" in our household.

-Poppy lovingly putting shoes and a dress-up bonnet on Sweet Pea and Sweet Pea sitting quietly like a little, live baby doll, watching her big sister with enormous hazel eyes behind lashes that just don't seem to end.

-Poppy sweetly (and sometimes a bit bossy) directing Sweet Pea on where to go and what to look at as we toured some new homes today.

-The two girls together as one "read" a book (Sweet Pea) while the other talked on a pretend telephone (Poppy) and set up a "sleepover" with a close friend. I can finally see that while Poppy's hair is a more striking color, Sweet Pea's is getting close to becoming a toned-down version of the same unique color.

-Poppy help her little sister up into and down from various chairs around our house when Sweet Pea would make noise that she needed help.

-Sweet Pea inspecting all of the flowers at the newly landscaped model homes. She had to go up to each and every bloom and touch them. I'm not sure what she likes more, the color, the variety, or the feel of them.

-Poppy putting on her ballet leotard and slippers and dancing with Sweet Pea who was dressed in a sparkly green Tinkerbell outfit. The image of the two of them twirling and curtseying will always live with me.

In sum, it's so clear that while my new "job" may give me an avenue to pursue some of my personal passions and interests, it's still all about being here for the little moments.

Itching for the Holidays.

Poppy is definitely my girl in so many ways. First, for better or worse she seems to be almost a little carbon copy of me. (Scary for those of you who know me, I know.) But really, when Poppy, Sweet Pea and I are out shopping together, people always look at the girls and nod toward Poppy as they say; "She's certainly her mother's daughter." In other words, if you held up her current photo to one of mine taken at her age, they could be mistaken for being photos of the same person.

She can also be very firm in her convictions and will make a great movie and/or stage director one day. She loves to give people detailed instruction on how to play with a toy or what lines to say when playing "Ariel and King Triton."

However, the most telling feature linking Poppy to being just like me is that not only can she watch the same movie over and over about 30 times in one week (well, maybe not 30 but it certainly feels like that to KB and I) and she notices something new each time, but more importantly is the fact that it's not even June and she's already jonesing for the Holidays. How do I know? Well, the other day she had to watch "A Christmas Story". Or as she describes it; "You know, the one where the bad kid makes the other kid stick out his tongue and then he's stuck to the pole and the firefighters come and rescue him. That's the movie I want to watch, PLLEEEAASE!"

Of course, we watched it. Of course, we enjoyed it. Of course, it's not even June yet, and I usually don't throw in a holiday dvd or cd until about July but I just loved it. I loved that she thought of it. I love that we cuddled as we watched it and pretended it was snowing outside (again, another one of Poppy's directives). I just love that she shares one of my passions. Bring on the holidays! We're ready!

Poppy's Wedding Plans

We had an incredible day: morning park playdate, swim class for both Poppy and Sweet Pea, picnic lunch at the pool, nap time in the car as I drove to Valley Fair Mall, shopping, and playing at the mall "toddler play zone" - carousel ride included.

After all of our activities, it was time for some "hot and ready" pizza with crazy bread for dinner - one of Poppy's favorite meals! As we were pulling out of our parking space, one of the gentleman from Little Caesers Pizza came out carrying a stack of about 10 pizzas and helped a young woman put them into the car next to us. Poppy saw this and commented:

Poppy: Wow! Look at all that pizza!

Mommy: Yes, that's a lot.

Poppy: Maybe she's getting it for her wedding.

Mommy: Maybe.

Poppy: That's what I'm going to have at my wedding - pizza! Everyone just loves pizza!

Mommy: That's right, everyone does like pizza.

Poppy: And crazy bread too, of course.

The wedding planning has officially begun!

Thanks Grandma and Papa B!

We had such a great visit... so many memories were made. Here's just a glimpse:

Watching Poppy at gymnastics, ballet, and swim class;
Going for our train ride (maybe next time we'll make it farther than San Mateo!);
Having a swim/beach weekend in Carmel when the weather couldn't have been any better;
Listening to the roosters and making new friends at the park;
And who could forget our trip to San Francisco Zoo? Sweet Pea had her first
carousel ride and I even got my exercise in for the day!

But the sweetest moment by far was when Poppy went the movies with Grandma and Papa - without mommy and Sweet Pea! Her first venture into independence! Yes, my baby is growing up and I'm the one suffering from separation anxiety. At least I can report that in addition to Papa sharing the popcorn, Horton from "Horton Hears a Who" is "very funny" and says "I'm as light as a feather" - which is really funny to Poppy since he is a huge elephant and so far I've heard her say it between all the giggles a few times a day.

So thank you for a wonderful two weeks. We can't wait to see you soon!