A Hard Days Night

Hard day at the office? Sweet dreams Busy Bee.

Pessimist or Smarty Pants?

Well, we survived the holidays. We had a houseful of people here on Christmas Eve, lots of food and wine, gifts for the kids, even a little Christmas Carol Karaoke. At one point in the evening, our friend Keely gathered the kids around and told them that she could go online and track where Santa is on the NORAD website (see article http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22388259/).
So they all gathered around the computer to see where Santa had been and when he might make it to Colorado. Keely read aloud the places around the world where Santa had already delivered gifts. Then she said, "The good news is, he made it out of Iraq." To which my daughter replied without skipping a beat, "What's the bad news?" We all broke out in laughter. It always amazes me just how grown up that little 3-year old voice can sound. Wise beyond her years for sure.

Happy Holidays

The holiday season is here and once again people are talking about how to be politically correct. This is just my opinion, but I think people should stop talking and start acting!

I think in the spirit of Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanza, Bodhi Day, Edi al-adha, whatever holiday you are celebrating, you should take a look outside yourself and celebrate the world around you. It is a beautiful place and there is so much to learn from it.

This year and in years to follow, I will try to teach my beautiful, open-minded child that it is OK to ask questions. It is OK to find faith in the people and things around you, whether they are Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Buddhist. It is OK to be inspired by the mountains, the oceans, the animals and the earth. It is OK to wonder what else is out there. It is OK to celebrate life and OK to celebrate death. I will teach her to be kind to others and to always try to do the right thing. I will teach her to be kind to the earth, it is the only place we have to live. I will teach her to respect other peoples beliefs and cultures, to visit far away places, to meet people and to embrace our differences. I will teach her to be vocal and to be heard. I will teach her to be caring, tolerant and understanding. And I will teach her to love.

Happy Holidays.

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas

I was unloading the groceries today when Bella came up to me with a very concerned look on her face and said, "Mommy, can we build a chimney?". I knew right away what the worry was about. I told her that sometimes...when people don't have chimneys...Santa comes through the window instead. With a sigh of relief, she went back to what she was doing.

I'll Be Back

Can't write now. Too busy living.

Stay tuned......

So Many Things to be Thankful For

We woke up this morning to find it had been snowing all night. Bella was overjoyed! It wasn't 8am before she had her coat, hat, boots and mittens on and she was out the door. The snow was still falling softly so I ran to get my camera to capture the moment. As soon as she caught sight of me, she gave her best smile and said "Snow Cheese!"

Five years ago, had I awoken to find snow on the ground the day before Thanksgiving with a list of 20 errands to run, I'd have been crabby and annoyed with the weather. But looking at it through a 3-year olds eyes, the snow just makes everything brighter. A brand new playground for the day. So as we drive around today running our 20 errands, we'll stop to splash in the puddles and collect snowflakes on our tongues and enjoy this beautiful Colorado day.

I can't think of anything I am more grateful for than the opportunity to watch my beautiful child learn and grow. Everyday she makes me laugh, she makes me think and she makes me thankful to be alive.

Happy Thanksgiving to you. What are you thankful for?

Baby I'm Amazed

It just never ceases to amaze me how children see and process the things we as adults have grown so accustomed to. Today Bella was full of funny perceptions....here are just a few:

"Mommy, my hair is wiggly. Yours is not." (Oh how I wish I had "wiggly hair" sometimes!)

(It was a little overcast and windy this afternoon)
"Mommy, can you turn the sun on please? It's too dark."

As she was going to bed tonight, she was telling me a story about a bird flying in the sky and she said, "I see it in my eyes when I am sleeping."
Sweet dreams beautiful girl. I hope you see lots of sunshine and pretty birds in your eyes tonight. Love, Mommy

Just Like her Father

This afternoon we were driving in the car when I heard a very loud noise from the back seat. I said, "Bella, Pew! Did you bump ?" (she calls them bumps...don't really know where she got it but we thought it was funny so bump it is) She responded, "That was a big bump, just like my Daddy does. He does BIG bumps!" Then she giggled.

...she didn't get it from me.

Look out Martha Stewart

Bella: "Mommy, these cookies are absolutely delicious!"
Mommy: "Well, thank you."
Bella: "Well you're VERY welcome!"

Just made me laugh.

Good Morning!

Why does it seem like on school days, the kids don't want to get out of bed, but on weekends they are up at the crack of dawn? I am sure when my mother reads this she'll be thinking...'Paybacks a bitch, huh?'

This morning as I tried to coax Bella out of bed, she burrowed under the covers and closed her eyes tightly. I offered her her favorite breakfast, tickled her feet and smothered her with kissed. She just held back the smiles and closed her eyes tighter. Then Daddy came in and turned on the lights. We left her alone for a few minutes and when I came back in to try to get her up again, she had her hands over her eyes and said, "There's bright getting in my eyes." I know exactly how you feel kid. Sometimes you just aren't ready for the bright in your eyes. But it is comments like that that fill my heart with bright.

Now GET OUT OF BED!

Just When You Thought It Was Safe

Oh where to begin.

Thursday: We're on our way out to run some errands when I decide it is a nice day to have "ladies lunch". I tell Bella we can go anywhere she wants to go for lunch and she says, "The Grocery Store" (which is Whole Foods, where we often sit and have lunch). She says she wants ice cream too and I say OK. We stop at the car wash on the way, and as we pull up she says in a solemn voice, "I can't have ice cream." With dread in my voice, I turn around and ask..."WHY!?".

"I peed."

I got out of the car, put the money in the car wash and as I washed the car, secretly dreamed that all the windows were open so I could just hose down the whole works, car seat, kid, peed-in pants. Ladies lunch was canceled.


Tuesday:
After an hour on the phone with Apple Tech Support trying to fix a computer problem (always fun) I look out into the living room to see my beautiful daughter standing on the coffee table in her underwear, head bent over, looking down between her legs as she pees on the table and LAUGHS her head off. Not knowing if tech support can still hear me while I am on hold, I refrain from saying ANYTHING at all. I march her up to her room silently. Tell her to get cleaned up and head back downstairs to clean up the table . Not happy.

Now at this point you are probably wondering, as I am, what is the bright side to these stories?

Here are just a few (believe me, it took me a while to come up with these)
1. Now that this has been published online, I have written proof and bribery for when she reaches dating age. I am sure her first boyfriend will LOVE to hear about how she peed on the coffee table! Better be home by curfew.
2. Honestly, the coffee table has never looked better.
3. For every upset, the victories are even sweeter. When we DO make it to the potty, the cheers are louder, the smiles bigger and the hugs tighter. What could be better than that?

“A child can go only so far in life without potty training. It is not mere coincidence that six of the last seven presidents were potty trained, not to mention nearly half of the nation's state legislators.” ~ Dave Barry

I'm a Big Kid Now

I was just flushing the toilet yesterday when Bella came into the bathroom with a big smile on her face and said, "YOU DID IT MOMMY! You went pee in the potty! Good job!"

I was so proud of myself.

Invasion of the Body Snatchers

I think my daughter was abducted by aliens. On any normal day we deal with the usual 3-year old attitude. That's MINE!. Mommy I want this. Mommy I want that. A little whining. A little crying. A temper tantrum here and there. But this morning she said, "C'mon Mommy, let's share. Doesn't that sound like a great idea?" They must have been really polite aliens.

Star Gazer

A story by Bella: (copied word for word by Mommy)

Once upon a time there was a brilliant brilliant star shining in Alaska. And there was a Mommy moose, a Daddy Moose and a Baby moose. And they were happy.

Sounds wonderful, doesn't it?

They're heeeere!

We had a tree service here this morning, cutting down some branches on a very large tree in our back yard. Bella looked out the sliding glass doors at them and said (think of the little girl in Poltergeist pressed up against the TV), "The treeeee killers are here."

?....Who knows.

UGH

I am not a morning person.

I could stay up all night working, reading, watching TV, but when the sun comes up, I want to be sleeping. As those of you with young ones at home know, sleep is rare and most nights, unfulfilling. Occasionally when a grandparent comes to visit, or Daddy takes the kid fishing early in the morning (and puts the dog outside before they go) I get to lay in bed, cozy under the covers, dreaming...of more sleep.

But today was not one of those days.

As soon as Daddy got up, the dog moved in - this is the usual routine. Sometime she actually takes his spot, head on his pillow, feet stretched out to the bottom of the bed. But most days she likes to spoon...with me. Now, keep in mind, we have an 80lb. Chocolate Lab. Soon after she cuddles in and I am pushed to the very edge of the bed, I feel "the stare". I open my eyes to find Bella's smiling face inches from mine. "The sun is up Mommy. GET UP!" It's 6:52am. I roll over only to find the dog on my other side, inches from my face. And so begins the day.

Looking on the bright side, there is nothing I would rather see upon opening my eyes each day, than the smiling face of my beautiful daughter. And I have to admit that one of my favorite things to do when the dog closes in, is to open one eye and peek at her as she stares at me, and hear her tail go 'thwap, thwap , thwap ' on the bed. I close my eye and the thwapping stops. Open my eye, 'thwap, thwap , thwap ' ... faster and faster. As if she is saying "The sun is up Mommy. GET UP!"

I guess sleep is overrated. At least until 6:52am tomorrow.

Brainwashed at age 3

Bella & I spent the last week in Minnesota, visiting Grandmommy, Grandpa, Aunt Tracy & Uncle Bill. Daddy ventured off to Alaska for a 10-day hunting trip. I am pretty sure it is all he thought about for the past month and a half. I would ask him a question about his workday, what he wanted for dinner, etc., and most of the time would be met with a glazed-over stare and a, "Huh?". He'd been making lists, shopping for gear and shooting his bow & arrow at the archery range for weeks...and apparently brainwashing his 3 year old daughter.
Back in MN, Aunt Tracy and Uncle Bill had purchased a giant box of Playdough - 24 colors, including gold and silver! - and were waiting with giddy anticipation for Bella's arrival so they could play with it. Bill came up with the idea that he would hide the Playdough around the house and then have a Playdough hunt when Bella arrived. A few days before we were to go to their house, Bill asked Bella if she wanted to go on a Playdough hunt. Without skipping a beat she replied, "I will bring my bow and arrow!" Not quite what he had in mind.

I think I will take her shoe shopping tomorrow, just to balance things out a little.

Out of the Mouths of Babes....

Just a few of the things that came out of Bella's mouth today....

"Do monkeys eat toasters?"
"I want to poop at the bank."
"Excuse me m'lady."
"Mommy, I SAID I want animal crackers, NOT animal crackers and milk. Take this milk away!"

And here's one compliments of Harris Stevens, age 4
"Dad, why do they call it iTunes. They should call it EarTunes. And EarPod, not iPod."

What more could I possibly add to that.

Everyone Needs More Sparkles

It was a beautiful day in Colorado today. 68 degrees, the sun was shining, with the slightest cool breeze blowing all afternoon. Autumn was definitely in the air and I love it! Bella rode her bike up and down the street, Daddy mowed the lawn and Mommy did what she loves best at this time of year...shopped for new fall shoes! When I got home, I decided it was time to pull out Bella's fall clothes and we put them away neatly in her closet. One dress in particular caught her eye. It was a dress that Grandmommy bought her last year that has a red sequined belt. When she saw it her eyes lit up and she gasped and said, "It's got sparkles on it! That makes me feel better." We both agreed that sparkles do tend to make you feel better. A sparkly new bike. A sparkly night sky. Sparkly sprinkles on a piece of chocolate cake. The sparkle of the sun shining on the water. The sparkle in your beautiful child's eyes. A sparkly new pair of fall shoes....I feel better already.

Shhhh....

I don't remember exactly what I was saying this morning when Bella made this comment. I am sure I was probably asking her if she had to go potty for the 100th time. Very sweetly she said, as she watched Sesame Street on TV, "Mommy, can you be quiet for just a little seconds. I am trying to watch."

I think we all need to be quiet for "a little seconds" every once in a while. It's amazing what you can hear in the silence.

Any Man's Dream Girl

"Mommy, I certainly am a beautiful princess.
And Mommy, Dale Jr. drives the number 8 car."

~ Bella, age 3

People LIKE Funny

I walked into the living room tonight to find Miss Bella in full Princess gear...tiara, long dress, glass slippers...sitting in her camping chair, eating apples and talking to Baby and Mr Turtle. They were having a tea party. She told me so. I laughed out loud to which she turned to me and with furrowed brow and a scolding tone said, " Mommy, don't LAUGH at me!!" so I replied, "But you're funny". "No Mommy, I'm NOT funny", she said. I smiled and said, "That's a good thing Honey. People like funny". Her scowl then turned to a HUGE grin and with exaggerated enthusiasm she said. "OH! OK" and went back to the tea party.

I Scream, You Scream

Daddy: "Bella, your face is FILTHY!"
Bella: "It's not filthy Daddy, it's ice cream."

It's Not a Jukebox!

Yesterday, I was changing a fuse in my car in the parking lot of Checker Auto Parts. Bella was waiting for me in the car, honking the horn, pushing all the buttons....and apparently playing some songs on the jukebox. On the way home, all of a sudden the speakers crackled and popped, (to which she said, "Listen, Fireworks Mommy!") then the stereo went out completely. I forgot about the problem until this morning. When I asked her if she put something into the CD player slot she replied, "Yeah, the money. I put the pennies in there." Wonderful. So we are on the way to the car dealership this morning to see if they can get them out. I am not really sure if I see the funny in this one yet... I'll get back to you once I get the bill.


update....Well, a new car stereo and $163.59 later...we're back up and running. Hilarious, right? But now I can plug my iPod in to the car - woo hoo! - and they did recover the "Sing Along with Grover" CD and my $0.36 out of the CD player - so I guess all is not lost.
Happy Friday everyone. Rock on Grover.

Bella Knows Best

In a rush to get out the door this morning, I offered Bella a cereal bar for breakfast. She replied, "No, that's too snack-y. How 'bout an apple instead. That would be better for me." I put down the car keys and the Diet Coke I was having for breakfast, and we sat and ate apples together.

Glass Half Full or Half Empty?

Yesterday while Bella & I were sitting down to eat lunch, I warned her that her lunch might be hot, so to be careful. She said,"It's not HOT Mommy, it's just warm a lot."



Moral of the story....There is always another way of seeing something...you just have to think outside the box sometimes.

Small Girl, Big Plans

I read aloud my list of errands this morning to Bella. The usual...bank, post office, paper store. As we were heading for the door Bella stopped me in my tracks and said, matter-of-factly, "Mommy, today we are going to do 3 things (holding 3 fingers up and counting). First, we will go to Grandmommy's house (which is in MN), then to New York City and then we will go to the park." And with that she hopped into the car, ready to go.

Of course, we didn't make it to Grandmommy's house, or NYC today, but I think we'll hit the park now.

The lesson of the day... add something unexpected and fun to your "to-do list" - makes those every-day tasks a little more enjoyable!

August 15, 2007

If you smile when no one else is around, you really mean it.
~Andy Rooney

Welcome to my new blog...."Because life is funny".

I find myself laughing out loud a lot these days....mostly because of my daughter, Bella. She amazes me every day with her charm and her 3-year-old wisdom. We are so busy with work, laundry, errands, life....sometimes we forget that life is funny and we need to enjoy the ride.

So when I find myself laughing out loud, I'm going to write it down, on a scrap of paper, a napkin, my hand .... and hopefully, between work, laundry, errands and the NEVER ENDING potty-training...I'll type them in here - for your enjoyment.

Please feel free to check in once in a while...when you need a laugh or to share your own laugh-out-loud moments.

LOL - Tasha

Today's quote: (toilet flushes) "Bye Bye Poop!" ~ Bella, age 3
Try it tomorrow - wave Bye Bye to your poop - I guarantee you'll laugh out loud while doing it!