Simplicity

Tomorrow is my grandmother's 95th birthday party.  She is a mother, grandmother, great-grandmother and great-great grandmother. And, she is one of the most peaceful women I know. If you ask her what her secret is in remaining so healthy, so alert, so vibrant, so calm, she will tell you:

If someone or something is bothering you, tell them, "I don't need you to complicate my life."

So simple.  She has always refused to let anyone or anything cause her a moment of anxiety or anguish. Rise about it she'd always say. Easier said than done, but she's 95 years old so the advice bears some attention.

I used to pride myself on all that I could accomplish during one "free" minute. I remember telling my grandmother what a good multi-tasker I'd become since becoming a mother. Her response was, wisely, Don't crowd yourself. 

She was right. I really think it's a good (and healthy) idea to at least try to focus on what I'm doing at any given moment and be mindful of the experience. I'm reading an insightful book called Mindfulness, by Ellen Langer in which she advocates for more control over our lives - not by trying to do more - but by changing our perspective on things and focusing on what we are doing and the choices we make.   Simply and peacefully; not complicated and stressful.

Pre-School Preparedness: Your Child is Ready; How About You?

Bumfuzzled by all the hullabaloo surrounding nursery school readiness? Here's all you really need to know:

1. Buy stain stick in bulk
2. Drop, stop and roll
3. Open backpacks in the comfort of your own home.

My Word for 2011

I’ve never been good at making resolutions, never mind keeping them.  I’ve generally made sweeping pronouncements like:

• I will work out 4 times a week
• I will write a book
• I will do volunteer work each week

And of course, I was just setting myself up for failure by not chewing down these large goals to bite size portions.

Baby Bottles, Infertility and Tootsie Roll Pops

Last Friday, I flashed back to one year ago when we were weaning Cricket off the bottle. I wrote about transferring what I’ve learned about Cricket’s personality then, to our current potty training endeavors. However, I didn’t include how I felt during the bottle transition.  If you really want to know the truth, I was pretty miserable.

Snow Day + Toddler Table + Butcher Paper = Family Harmony Tip #5

I hit a milestone today: A stay-at-home mom on her first snow day with an active 3-year old. This tip kept us entertained and TV-free during a Nor’easter – at least for 45 minutes until we could go out and play! First off, Cricket's table and chair set was one of the best Christmas gifts that Santa brought her. And, I’d been looking for butcher paper for arts projects and found a great option at Michael's Crafts, about 10 hours before the snow started to fall. The novelty of butcher paper really helped us to enjoy our snow day.


 3 ways to use butcher paper to entertain your toddler:

1. Encourage large-canvas art skills
2. Sneak in a few educational concepts
3. Play restaurant

How to Bottle-Wean and Potty-Train Without Even Trying

THEN: January 2010 ~ Kicking the Baby Bottle Habit

One year ago, shortly before her second birthday, Cricket was still using a bottle. I had been concerned for a few months about how, when and if she would stop being so attached to her bottle. After consulting family, friends and bloggers, I developed a weaning plan to help her kick the habit. I refused to put hot sauce on the nipple as one blogger suggested.

Amazing Grace How Sweet The Sound

My three year old daughter is lying in my bed about three yards from me, breathing quickly and deeply, making little peeping sounds as she sleeps. I'm at the computer trying to cleanse my mind of all its random racing thoughts. Cricket's sick.  A little more than typical "toddler sick", but not so much that it warranted an ER visit today. She's had one virus on top of another - literally – first the norovirus and then an upper respiratory virus. We spent two hours at the doctor's office today, with breathing treatments and the promise of a return trip tomorrow to make sure her oxygen saturation level stays where it should be. When we left the doctor’s office, she was breathing at 96% capacity, so I think she’ll be fine.

* * *

I wrote the opening paragraph of today’s post two weeks ago, but I never got the chance to complete it. Three hours after I wrote these lines, Cricket was in the emergency room for breathing difficulty, and she spent three nights at the hospital with pneumonia. It was heartbreaking to see her so small in a big hospital bed, hooked up to a nasal cannula to help her breathe and an IV for antibiotics and fluids. It was a nightmare, but we made it through.  Cricket’s perfectly healthy now and, with the dawn of the New Year, we’re back to our familiar, comforting schedule.