On Love and Nipples: Thursday Evening Conversations

Part I:

Love:  If you're going to dis me dis me like this.

This evening there was plenty of excitement when daddy was home early to come with us to pick Henry up from daycare.  Then off he went to do some spring skiing with colleagues from work and off we went to have an easy dinner at Bertucci's.

As we sipped our waters and lemonades, Henry said, "Mommy, I love you."  My response was first, "Henry, do you need to go potty?"  It's not as weird as it sounds...trust me.  Somehow "I love you." became code for "I need to go potty."  This time it wasn't, so I added, "I love you too, Henry.  I love you as big as the sky."  Then he replied, "Mommy ...  I don't love you ... um, I don't like you  ... I don't like you when you leave me."

"I know."  I replied.

Part II

Nipples:  What are these?

As we got ready for bed this evening, Henry decided he wanted his top off.  Isabelle and Henry and I piled into his bed with a stack of books.  First, it was tickle time though.   Henry asked us to blow bubbles on his belly and he giggles out of control pushing us away and asking for more.  Then the children quiet down as Isabelle clicks her tongue, as she does when she's relaxing, and strokes any bit of exposed skin she can find (this time I got a break and Henry had his belly rubbed).  Henry, the night owl, is not tired so we bring Isabelle half asleep to her room for one last story.  Snug in her bed and fast asleep we head out to start Henry's bedtime again.

As we sit and chat a while, Henry rubs his chest and asks, "Mommy, what are these?"  "They are nipples."  I reply.  He rubs them and asks how they come off.  I explain that just like our nose, and fingers and fingernails they are part of us and they're supposed to stay there.  He thinks for a minute and then says, "Mommy, I think that if you eat round foods, that's where these come from.  That's how they get on you."

Not sure if he'll be wanting any more carrot "coins"  or should I say "nipples" for dinner.

First Full Week of Spring

Play

Spring is in the air and so is music.  Inspire your little virtuoso with an outing to the Symphony Hall for a family concert with the talented Boston Youth Symphony Orchestra.  There's nothing like children to inspire children.  Children are free and adult tickets are $20. (Saturday March 27th at 11:00)

Majestic Yoga, a cute little yoga studio in Huron Village now offers wonderful children's yoga classes on Friday afternoons.  It is a great way to end the week and start the weekend grounded, relaxed and open to whatever comes their way.  My daughter loves Tara who keeps the class moving along with stories, soothing rites, and child appropriate yoga poses.  Classes are available on a drop in basis.  Hi Rise is a great pre-yoga stop or post yoga treat. (Fridays 2:45 for ages 2.9 - 4 and 3:30 for ages 5 - 11 )

Woolapalooza Baby!  It's coming up on Saturday at Drumlin Farm.  Say hello to the new babies on the farm, watch some sheep shearing and sheep herding demos.  There will be plenty of activities for children of all ages and children under 2 get in free.  Tasty treats will be all natural, locally grown and harvested Drumlin farm food now if only our schools could provide some of that! (Saturday March 27th from 10-4)

Playgrounds are the top entertainment spot this time of year with the warmer weather.   Head home for a quick snack and homework or off to lessons, then pack a dinner picnic and enjoy an evening at the playground.  On Tuesday, the weather might be a bit wet so you can check out the new Muckykids Art Studios.  Drop in hours are from 10-2:00 on Tuesdays.


Eat
Father, Celebrity Chef  and allergy activist Ming Tsai's famed Blue Ginger is adding a noodle bar which débuts NOT this week, but next Tuesday, March 30th.  So if you have a noodle loving child plan a special lunch date or if you just want to have some time to sit and savor the new bar with a lunch cocktail, make arrangements to check it out alone or with a friend some time next week. (Tuesday, March 30th)

If tacos are calling your name then you'll be glad to know that El Pelón Taqueria has reopened after their fire at a new location 2197 Commonwealth Ave./ Brighton Ma 02135/Phone: 617-779-9090.


Planning for Passover? Give yourself a break whether you love to cook it all or you love to cater it all.  There are so many options.  Tony Maws has his seder open to guests at Craigie on Main for goodness sake!  If you haven't gotten to the point where you're saying "Next year at Craigie!" then check out these other Passover menus to help you get it all done while keeping your sanity.  Formaggio Kitchen, Wilson Farm, Bakers' Best, Russo's, The Butcherie, or Whole Foods.


We're not quite getting to farmer's market season, but it is fast approaching.  Start prepping your raised beds and plant some seeds in egg cartons or newspaper pots and soon you'll have your own farmer's market spread.  We uncovered some nice baby chives as we cleared the leaves from our yard this weekend.


Shop

Have you looked at your children's feet lately?  Are they still wearing their Uggs or Kamik boots trying to climb the spider web at the playground?  Do their shoes look smaller than their socks?  The Stride Rite Outlet at the Arsenal Mall is having a buy one get one 50% off sale.  It's the perfect time for a fitting and a seasonal update in the shoe department.

Grand Opening of Nordstrom at the South Shore Plaza will be March 26th!

Shop or stretch at a Lululemon store near you.  Free yoga classes and sometimes pilates classes too are offered.  Check out the site for your closest store.

To Do List

Camp Registrations continue...

Massachusetts Audubon Camps
Meadowbrook Day Camp
Fayerweather Street School Camp
Summer at Park
Shady Hill Day Camp
Arsenal Center for the Arts Camp
Boston.com Camp Guide
Family Camp

Redefining The Gliterati

I know, I know, the time change is only one hour, but there's something about it that throws us all off. We try to start dinner early but stay up a bit later and do some extra active night time activities to get the kids asleep on time, but somehow one is passed out early and the other is way too awake to even get into bed.  Isabelle tends to be the one to pass out early and to be fair she was sick the entire daylights savings weekend.  Henry is the night owl of the two and he was just not going to bed.

We had a late dinner, did the walk around the block with daddy, a "night night" game of marble track and then it was off to bed.  After a valiant effort, daddy came downstairs saying "Henry wants a little 'nuggle before he goes to sleep."  I go up give him a hug and kiss and head back downstairs.  A few short seconds later I hear "Mommy, you didn't 'nuggle a little bit.".  What he really wants is for me to lie next to him so he can play with my hair until he falls asleep.  "I'll be there in a minute." I say, as I continue looking on craigslist, freecycle, and bizrate.com for a keyboard for Isabelle to practice piano on.   A few seconds later it is quiet and I continue my frustrating search for a good but inexpensive keyboard.  "I guess he's asleep."  I comment to my husband.

Glitter and Glue: 101 Creative Craft Ideas for Use with Under-Fives (Tiddlywinks)

It turns out sleep wasn't really what was going on.  The problem with the convenient assumption that my darling son had drifted off into dreamland is that just a few steps away, in the guest room was my life time supply of glitter that I bought when Pearl in Central Square closed down.  Henry decided that it was a great idea to just dump out the glitter quietly since he had nothing better to do.  Mr. Sandman was not on the premises by my little gliterati was.

So I scolded him and told him that it was a really bad idea to do what he had done and scooted his glittered little jammied self into bed.  He was exhausted, it was late, the thrill of doing something totally impish, and getting mommy to come back up and put him to bed was all too much.  So, slightly dusted in glitter, into bed he scooted.   He grabbed a few strands of my hair and in an instant dozed off.  

In the morning, Henry was up first and as we clomped down the stairs he says, "Mommy my eye hurts."   I respond "You probably have glitter in your eye.  Let me see."  Sure enough a little blue square of glitter sat right in the corner of his eye by the bridge of his cute little nose.  "That's what you get for dumping out all the glitter." I thought to myself.  And another day began.

Welcome: Peeing on a stick

When the highlight of your week is being able to open that box you bought a few days ago to pee on a little plastic stick you know you’re on a completely different path than you have ever gone down before. Those of you who have older kids, fess up, you still have the first test floating around somewhere. Whether you’ve been trying, didn’t expect it so soon, are celebrating after a long hard journey towards this point in your lives together as a couple and future family, your life is about to change drastically. It’s the good, the bad, and the ugly. It’s an adventure of a lifetime full of tiny and not so tiny magnificent moments, long hard hours and days, pain and joy that can’t be foreshadowed, predicted or described.

No matter what type of parent you plan to be, one thing is certain. The sites you will be googling, the people you will be calling, and the magazines you might be reading, are going to change or at least broaden. As you venture on there are links, resources, events, and groups that are at your fingertips that will make your life so much easier on many levels.