Lazy Bones

I have a rule that I won't "retire" a too small outfit if I already took the effort to get it on a girl. Piper's 18 month shirt is so ill-fitting (picture an overweight high schooler who insists on wearing a shirt that's in rather than something that looks good on her) that I almost wanted to break my self-imposed rule. It is especially amusing given the style of the shirt with the little jackety type top with belly bursting beneath it.

Piper is pretty hilarious so I feel like we're laughing with her not at her. She likes to stand up and kinda shake her rear to show-off. I think she does it just to be funny. And poured into this shirt, she's funny for sure.

Happiness from within

As a mother of daughters I always want my girls to learn to find happiness from within. I just don't want them to depend on the approval of others (male or female) to feel good. And Claire. & Macy are at such a great age right now in regards to self-confidence:

"I'm beautiful!"
"Watch me dance"
"I did a really good job"

Generally, I'm pretty happy. And, that's probably because I have a lot to be grateful for with three healthy kids, no fertility struggles. But realistically I'm rather mediocre. We're not rich, but we are without financial struggles. I'm overweight but in excellent physical health. I can run, but I don't set any speed records. But, I am generally pretty happy, and I really want my kids to be happy. And nice to each other. For the love of God, be kind to your sisters. I want to give them opportunities, but not every little thing they want. I am always the bad cop around here. They better like me, too!

Maternity Test

Claire is a mini-me. Piper is Bob in pink. Macy looks like no one. Blue eyes? Constantly eats, skinny little thing?

If I didn't recall her labor (hardest of the the three), I might wonder if she's mine! She is generally fine being bossed around by Claire. Last weekend my mom had the big girls, and Claire took a toy from Macy. My mom told Claire that this might make Macy sad. Macy asked if she promised not to be sad, if Claire could keep it. Mind you, she's smart as a whip and not a pushover. Her tolerance of Claire's constant micro-managing is enviable and not a trait passed down from her mother.

But what floors me the most is her preference to play indoors, alone. Unseasonably warm day this week, I offered a walk before naptime. No thanks, rather sleep. SLEEP?!? Most times when Claire, Piper and I go outside, she will play alone indoors which means I'm stuck hanging out by the window. At the beach she'll often chose to play in the sand over water. Sand is so sandy!

Claire gets up and wants to know where we're going. If we're not going anywhere (school isn't enough anymore?), it's who is coming over? I was hitting the library story hour circuit pretty hard last year to appease her appetite for people & adventures. This year Macy has asked once to go to the Neenah library. I was happy to oblige, but I was caught so off guard. I would have showered or chosen my clothes with more care since Neenah seems to be the fancy library!

Macy is so often in her own little world Claire even knows we call it La La land. She's an absolute hoot, everything in the past was "yesterday". She's probably spent more time with her head in the clouds at 2 1/2 than I have at 33.

It might help the whole mother-daughter relations to be so different, but most days I think, how are we related?

They still sell those in stores, right?

So, I was just perusing Craigslist, and someone had a wanted post for diapers - not cloth diapers, because for me that's not even weird. Their post said they both had jobs (telling potential sellers they have money?) and that their baby was due January 27 and they wanted diapers. Maybe they were looking for free ones, but they didn't really have a request for freebies. It was all very strange to me.

I wanted to reply that I believe both Wal-mart and Target sell these diapers of which they speak. It seemed odd that buying them off Craigslist would be easier or even much cheaper, but maybe I am out of touch. I live in a bubble (the Internet) that exposes me to a certain type of local mama I rarely see since mornings I get Claire on/off the bus and afternoons are for napping.


I'm feeling especially crunchy these days. In the last couple months I have had to define even the word "crunchy" to people I know IRL (I totally learned that acronym today- thanks urban dictionary! ) I spend all this time worrying about things like the goldfish that occassionally end up on Piper's highchair (grains = bad), carseat bases (apparently the car seat might fly out in a crash), and using corn syrup in holiday treats (because corn syrup is actually pretty bad stuff). These worries are really not on most parents mind. We've always been on the cloth diapers, but we now use cloth at night 100% of the time. I use cloth wipes with Piper. I really should have been on the cloth night diapers and wipes all along. None of this really has made me feel any different than say,recycling. But, I bought myself a Diva Cup last month. I officially feel like a hippie. A hippie that would mention this on the Internet (well, I'm still me, which is to say not shy).
I felt like an 8th grader again (I was a late bloomer) feeling like everyone knew something was different- in this case that I was using a menstrual cup.

I asked a friend who also uses a Diva Cup if she felt like a complete granola. She said, "yes, so I just try not to think about it." Sounds like a plan!

She's a mover & a shaker (but a bit of a crier)

She can't crawl. She can't walk. But, she managed to scoot over to the dog's waterbowl (which is in desperate need of a cleaning).

The days this week have been filled with her getting in position to crawl with one troublesome leg caught under her. Then, she cries. If you push the leg out to crawling position, she cries. If you put her back to sitting upright, she cries and then repeats. If you leave her to figure it out, she cries. I hate to make predictions. Well, actually, I just hate to be wrong about predictions. But, daresay, I think she might crawl soon.

I should be used to this, but dang, they seem to just grown up so fast. Today she clapped at Claire's school fair when other kids were clapping. It was so cute. Earlier this week I was raking with her in the Beco, and I thought "this will be easier when I can carry her on my back." Then, I remembered ,she isn't a baby and she has contentedly been in the back carry position all week. Sniff.

Winner, Winner, Chicken Dinner!

"I win!"



(Claire and Macy's standard exclamation after walking down the stairs/getting dressed/finishing a meal)






"It's not a contest!"



(my standard response especially to a meal-eating race)







I had been wondering, where do they get this competitiveness from? Is it because Claire's in school now? I certainly don't pit them against one another. And Bob might be the least competitive person I know.







I remember being so competitive with my brother. I thought it was because he was so into sports and had a competitive personality and that we were 14 months apart in age.







I am beginning to think it's some genetic survival mechanism. We are just competitive people, and I created more competitive babies.







I came to this last night when I stepped out for a quick run and was walking with this internal dialogue:







"None of my music is suitable for running"



"Just run. Nicole, you're stalling!"



"I can't start to Jack Johnson. It will just set the tone for a slow run"



"There's not enough daylight left to be so picky, you have already skipped 10 songs"



"Why is this song even on here? It is offering me every slow, sucky song on here"



[Lady runs across the block perpendicular to me]



"You could run faster to Cat Stevens than that lady. And she's skinnier than you, unfair."



"Cat Stevens it is!"







Then, I ran to catch and pass the lady. She had headphones on and didn't hear me coming. There were cars on the street, so I couldn't cross to the other side or get around her. I was stuck behind her going slower than I wanted and thinking this was so not good for my karma. She probably just started running or had a baby. I eventually was able to cross the street and run off ahead. Then, I thought, geez, that lady didn't even hear or see me. I could have been a mugger or a rapist. So, then I was paranoid I should be on high alert for muggers and rapists (though, there's probably no black market for cracked iPods). Or, in the very least, being competitive makes you less aware of what's going on around you and is a bit obsessive.







And that, most certainly, the girls get their competitiveness from me.

Great Expectations?

Claire's teacher sends home a newsletter on Fridays. Recently, she reminded parents to let their kids do stuff themselves like put on their clothes, shoes, jackets and winter clothes. My guess is this is a reminder for parents of only children or children further apart in age. Or, I am a major meanie with Michelle Duggar like expectations for my eldest. Sure, I have to help with zippers, but she does all that and when Macy's cooperative, she even helps Macy do it.

I was a bit relieved to read the teacher said that because when Claire was at the doctor with UTI symptoms, the doctor said 4 was pretty young to be wiping herself... I was like, sheesh, I am trying to get the 2 1/2 year old to wipe herself, and you want me to wipe the 4 year old? Plus, it's pretty hard to convince her she can't do it anymore. I am not lazy. I would prefer my more hygienic wiping to theirs, but Macy loves to use the bathroom the second I have a sleepy baby teetering on the edge of going down for a nap.

The teacher probably has an idea Claire's putting on her own winter things since even a not-very-fashionable 33 year old would chose the hat/mitten combos she does...