April 23, 2012

So, we bought a juicer a few weeks ago and after letting it sit in the kitchen for a while, I finally got it out, looked up some recipes, and hit the grocery store. We've done smoothies with various fruits/veggies in the past and while they've tasted ok, the texture wasn't a hit. Fruit/yogurt smoothies are about the only way to go. So... yes. I was a little skeptical about using kale, cabbage, and beets in a drink but after a few different combinations, I've gotta say that it hasn't been bad. We've done kale/cabbage/carrot/apple juice, kale/cabbage/carrot/apple/pear, all of the above with beets/celery, and then tonight's treat was carrot/apple/orange/ginger. I sprinkled ground ginger in all of them except today's- used fresh. I definitely can taste it more when it's fresh. I like the zing it adds.

I'm not sure I could do one of the the longer cleanses but aside from lunch today, we're working on a three day juice diet this week. It wasn't bad this morning. I didn't even realize I hadn't eaten anything solid till after the girls had already finished their lunch. I actually FORGOT that my lunch was even ready till after I'd been babbling on to Chad about random things in the office for a while.  I'm such a grazer, tho, that I'm not sure I can actually commit to the real juice reboot. Maybe it wouldn't count against me if what I graze on is more fruit?

Anywhoo. That's going on.

Passover was a short week. I thought it would be hard to be leaven-free but the days flew by and the girls didn't seem to really notice that they didn't have the same meals/snacks as usual. Yom HaAtzmaut is Thursday and we'll have a carnival at temple on Sunday. I didn't go last year... I don't remember why. But it sounds like it's going to be a lot of fun so I'm not missing it again.

The girls and I picked up cinder blocks and soil/compost this morning and while they were napping, I put together a little raised bed garden in the back yard. I really hope the dogs leave it alone. I'll probably have to put up some sort of fence, tho. So far, we have green beans, lettuce, spinach and some herbs planted. I'm hoping I remembered the right herbs to deter flies. They have been AWFUL this year already. Poor doggies are just bit all to pieces every day.

I suppose that about covers it. We had Ben this past weekend and spent Saturday afternoon at Joel and Stacey's house for Rowen's birthday party. Ben and the other kids swam/splashed in the pool. It's so fun to watch Ben really dive in. He's not what you'd call an 'accomplished' swimmer but he's got leagues on me. This summer ought to be a lot of fun if we can spend a good portion of our weekends on the lake. I think water-play is perfect for Ben... it requires the energy he seems to have.

March 16, 2012

Ugh. Sometimes, it feels like it should acceptable to hunt someone down and punch them in the face for being stupidly selfish. Stupid OR selfish can be forgiven but I swear, the combination of the two is just BEYOND.

March 9, 2012

Ok so the BIG news around here is the engagement of some very dear friends of ours. Finally. We only made them start dating like... 5 years ago. Maybe 6, actually. Anyway. Yay!! A wedding!!! Next year!!! hehe.

In at-home news, we've been egg-sperimenting the last couple of days. teehee. I came across this via Pinterest and we set out to dissolve our egg's shell and have a NAKED EGG. It took more than 24 hours, at least for me to be happy with the nudity level. And the kitchen smelled fanTAStic for that time. Blech. But the horror excitement on Izzy's face is totally worth it.

Here's how we started:

Nothing too terribly exciting, other than the immediate covering of bubbles.

By the next morning, we had a frothy layer on top of the vinegar. Yay, calcium carbonate!

 From the side - lots of bubble activity for sure. The egg would also periodically roll on its own. THAT was really cool.

Day 3 - we emptied the vinegar, rinsed and rinsed with water and then added food coloring.

 We emptied out the dyed water and ran fresh in... the egg is most definitely colored. I wonder if we could boil it and cut it open to see how deeply the dye saturated?

March 8, 2012

Ugh. I feel like I have been yelling since the moment I woke up. Lily insists on testing my limits by staring back at me while I'm asking/telling her not to do something... I've considered the possibility that she sees yelling as a bluff but speaking quietly and firmly has even less effect on her. I wish I knew what her buttons were to know what would have the most immediate response. It's not always possible to get 'on her level' or escort her to a corner as soon as she disregards an order. Sometimes the threat of the corner is enough but I hate to use the 'do you need to stand in the corner?' line too often. It's always backed up if she continues to disobey but by then, the damage is often done. Lotion is spilled, towels are strewn across the room, toys are thrown...

I know this is just a phase. I know she won't always test my patience and she won't always be nearly-three. Possibly I should just stop taking it personally.

February 28, 2012

How is it almost March already? This is craziness.

I think my last entry must have been the one about not spanking the girls anymore. Which would mean it's been nearly 3 weeks since they've been spanked for 'realsies.' I think I've swatted a couple of  bottoms to hurry them up the stairs but nothing major. It's likely too soon to say whether the shift has been successful or not, since every week/day/hour brings about changes in their temperaments, attitudes, and reactions.

Looking at some old pictures of Lily made me tear up a little. She was such an easy-going, HAPPY baby. Now she's a bit mercurial and stubborn. Ok. Not just 'a bit'... she's a LOT mercurial and stubborn. She's still pretty low-maintenance but when she wants her way, she makes it known to the entire area code.

We're working with Izzy to cut down on the water-works. Any deviation from routine or expectation can send her into a near panic mode. This could just be normal nearly-5 behavior for a girl, tho. I don't know. Ben was relatively easy to manage at this age... he wanted his way, of course, but I don't recall him bursting into tears over every little thing like Izzy sometimes does.  Anyway... trying the divert/distract tactic with her seems to help but it's not always easy to break through the emotions and get her attention.

Parenting is hard and every day I'm reminded of just how much work and affection my parents put into us on a daily basis.

February 10, 2012

I recently read this article, reposted by Mayim Bialik  and found it very intriguing. I'm not sure I completely buy into the idea that spanking makes a child more aggressive, as they suggest, but I'm definitely open to the possibility that spanking doesn't produce the desired effect in many cases. Spank too much and, depending on the child's temperament, they cease to see it as a major consequence and learn to almost ignore it as it becomes part of the routine. Or they begin to expect it for everything and are easily scared which is definitely not cool.

Based on that, I've decided to challenge myself not to spank the girls. I don't feel like I do a LOT of spanking and most of what I call spanking is a swat on the behind to curb behavior that they've been warned about but aren't controlling on their own. Things like climbing on furniture, reaching for things that are on the counter, taking toys from each other, getting out of bed and running around screaming instead of sleeping, etc. I try to first tell them what they're doing isn't ok and if they persist, they'll get a swat. Lily is our 'persister' around here. Nothing stops her, not physical obstacles, not stern looks, not anything.

We've had two full days of non-spanking and I would say I definitely see an improvement: mostly in my own attitude. Who knew that once you cross the line from mildly irritated to spank-mode, it becomes easier and easier to reach the "totally frustrated" point? It IS hard to refrain from the 'surprise spank' (thanks for the term, Megan!) but I'm finding that the surprise 'come sit with me for a minute' works just as well and there are considerably fewer tears involved.

I probably shouldn't count yesterday in our 'non-spanking' tally because having friends over immediately reduces the odds of corporal punishment. But bedtime didn't include any deflectors and there were definitely some things going on that would normally have led to a swat on the behind so I'm counting the whole day.

In the interest of full-disclosure: I am still using the possibility of a spanking to get results. As in, "Do you need a spanking or will you listen to Mama on your own?" and "I am choosing not to spank you for this but YOU need to obey Mommy."

January 24, 2012

The steady drizzle is outside but sometimes I feel like it's in my head. Just thought after thought, dripping down and splashing around. I don't believe I've ever been unfairly criticized or belittled by friends or family but I've managed to do a lot of that to myself over the last few years. I detest that I feel guilty constantly. I don't put enough effort into lesson planning, I don't focus my energies properly on housework, I don't discipline consistently enough, I don't involve myself in enough; the list goes on and on.

I want to be happy with less but do more.