Boppli

Any day now we are going to have to stage an intervention for our darling Talia. I know, I know, you're probably all thinking "What's her addiction? Booze? Pills? Meth?" but the sad truth is we're looking for a 12-step program to help our bottomless pit with her addiction to broccoli.

We've always known she's been a fan of broccoli, since the very first time I steamed it into a soggy mess and cut it up into teeny-tiny bite size pieces for her. Her daycare provider has often told me she has to wait until Talia has eaten the meat & rice off her plate before she's allowed a "dessert" of broccoli, otherwise she'll want a broccoli-only lunch. Last weekend Tally learned how to say broccoli. Well, sort of. She now squeals "Boppli! Boppli!" while furiously signing "please."

I am more than happy to give her what she wants when she asks for fruit or veggies. We like broccoli, too, and usually have it at least once a week anyway, so this is no big deal. But this week our broccoli consumption has gotten out of control. We've had broccoli 3 times for supper, and Talia has taken care of all the leftovers for snacks and dessert on the days that boppli hasn't made an appearance on our supper table. She's asked for it for breakfast almost everyday this week, and for lunch at daycare (although the daycare provider had no idea what she wanted, lol.) She talks about it to her stuffed animals; Grammie can't get a word in edgewise on the phone because her granddaughter keeps rambling on and on about her favourite food.

Breakfast this morning was particularly hard on her:

Talia: signing please repeatedly (after polishing off a big bowl of Cheerios & milk and a dish of applesauce)
Mama: Tally Raine, what else would you like?
Talia: Boppli! Boppli! BOPPLI!!!!!!
Mama: Sorry, honey, we don't have any broccoli. What else would you like?
Talia: (whimpering, signing slowing down) boppleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee?
Mama: Pick something else, sweets.
Talia: (sad, but goes back to her standard breakfast top-up) bana? bana?
Mama: You bet! One banana, coming up!! (goes to counter, discovers we are out of bananas) Rats.

That's when Talia decided to have a tantrum for breakfast. Poor bunny. If you would like to participate in our intervention, please prepare a short statement about how Talia's addiction to broccoli is affecting your life.

Big Girl

Throughout this entire pregnancy, I've been telling myself and anyone who asks "Meh, we're not worrying about getting ready for the baby until after Christmas." Well, guess what, folks: after Christmas is here.

Grammie and Grampy left on the 27th. Before they left they emptied the furniture from our spare room and took a load of things to Value Village for us in their truck. Then we got busy turning our spare room (what we used to call Kent's room on account of the view of the pool) into a big girl room. I cried for most of the day. Talia has changed so much in the last few weeks - becoming a real walker, eating with utensils, drinking out of a real cup instead of a sippy, talking up a storm - and I was suddenly feeling very guilty about the arrival of a new baby rushing her through her babyhood. Fortunately Raine was here to remind me that a) she didn't walk until she was almost 17 months old, so she's had a good run at being babied, b) she is never going to remember a time when she didn't have a younger sibling, so it's not like she's going to be pining away for these days and c) she's super excited about becoming more & more independent. Still, it was hard on Mama.

We finished the room Monday night after Talia went to bed. On Tuesday I was feeling unsettled all day at work, anxious about the transition and not looking forward to what I expected to be a long night ahead. As it turned out, there was no need. When we got home, we turned her loose in her new room and she loved it! She played in there all evening. After supper we did her regular bedtime routine and tucked her into her new bed, where she stayed for the entire night. (Okay, Daddy found her sleeping on the floor BESIDE her bed a few times, but it still counts!) And so far today she's gone down for 2 naps in her bed with no problem at all. In celebration of her big-girlness, we broke out the Tadoodles this afternoon. We made a glorious mess and celebrated with a nice bath.

So, big girl room: check. Now, on to the rest of our list. This weekend we're shopping for a new crib mattress and a (sigh) double stroller. I think we're going to get a sit'n'stand instead of one with 2 seats. And I suppose I should pick up some newborn-sized diapers and perhaps a nice warm outfit to come home from the hospital in. Eeeeep! We're having a BABY!!!!

Conversations With My Daughter

Talia is hilarious these days. Rainer and I spend a lot of time together saying "She's nothing like her mother!" and vice-versa.

These days our funniest, and most annoying, chats happen in the morning. Tally was spoiled for the last 2 weeks because her daycare was closed, so she had a good run of sleep-in mornings. Now she has to get up early, and she is definitely not a morning person. (Okay, that is 100% from me, I admit it.) On mornings when I go to work, I get up, shower, and get dressed before going in and waking her up. Our morning usually goes like this:

Mama (turning on light): Talia! Taaaaaaaaaaaaaally Raaaaaaaaaaaaaaine!
Talia: (mumble, groan)
Mama: You awake in there?
Talia: Noooooooooooooooooo......
Mama: It's time to get up! Wakey-wakey, eggs and bac-ey!!
Talia (covering head with blanket): Noooooooooooooooooo................................. beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeed.
Mama (sitting down in glider, poking Talia through the bars): Tally, honey, let's go. It's time to get up.
Talia (laying down along the back side of the crib, where her short mama with the giant belly can't reach her): HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
Mama (cursing the fact her 1 year old already mocks her): Don't you want to go to Jojo's house?
Talia (standing up so fast she falls over, tries multiple times before succeeding, hands Ted E. Bear to Mama): Do-do?
Mama (in Ted's voice): Good morning, Tally! Let's get ready to go to Jojo's house!
Talia (taking Ted back and throwing him out of the crib): Oh, hiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii!

If we do any of this out of order, Talia is a little bear. I cannot touch her before she wakes up, or she wakes up screaming her head off. I cannot lift her out of the crib before she throws Ted out, or we have a tantrum-filled morning. Once she says "Oh, hiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii!" like she's just noticed I'm in the room, she's her regular, sunny self and we can get on with our day. How is it that my 1 year old is already a teenager first thing in the morning?

Oh, and in case you're wondering, her father can go into her room, pick her up from a dead sleep, and she is instantly wide-awake and charming, and even gives him a big hug. Hrmph.

It's Been A Long Week

Talia goes to a wonderful home daycare. The daycare provider gives them lots of love and attention, amazing and healthy home-cooked meals, takes them outside twice a day, and keeps them happy & busy all day long. Talia loves going to Jojo's house, and usually tries to hide when I get there to pick her up at the end of the day so that she can stay longer. So I'm not sure who was more disappointed this week when Jojo ended up in the hospital, thus necessitating some quality weekday time for Talia with one or another of her parents. I suspect, however, that it may be Talia, judging by the way she yelled and pointed at Mama while talking on the phone to Grammie today. (Back atcha, kiddo. You're lucky the recycling was already picked up this week, or you would have been out in the blue box this afternoon.)

Poor bunny, I can't really blame her for being less than thrilled with our week so far. Usually on my days off during the week, we're fairly busy in the mornings before coming home so Tally can nap away the afternoon. We take in a Moms & Ones preschool program, we get groceries, we usually have an appointment somewhere with a waiting room full of new toys to explore, we hang out at the park, we have a playdate with friends, etc. This week we missed preschool for a marathon eye appointment in a room freshly emptied of all toys (damn you, H1N1!!,) we had a long grocery/Christmas shopping outing that was pretty boring, Mama has been trying to work from home as much as possible (Talia used up all my sick time while she was still on the inside,) and it's been too cold to play outside very much. Plus, 2-tooth Tally has been having a rough teething week - 3 new toofers have finally poked through - so my usually sunny, easy-going little girl:

has been replaced with a whining, grumpy, bored toddler with a sore mouth.

But things are looking up, friends. I have officially given up trying to get any more work done this week and am embracing my time home with Ms. Crankypants! It looks like we might have a break from teething for a little while! Tomorrow morning Sarah D. and her little darlings Lucy and Charlie are hosting us for a playdate, along with Auntie Erin & Edie! Only one more day until Daddy is home for TWO WHOLE DAYS!! On Saturday Mama is going out to see friends Lisa & Kristin in what is certain to be the best production of RENT ever!! And by the end of the weekend, I hope to be completely done Christmas shopping and baking, with only a mountain of perogies left to be conquered. I think I can, I think I can.

I Don't Mean to Alarm You....

..... but someone told me this weekend there were only 40 days left until Christmas. Eep, eep, eep. That was enough to catapult our little family into full-on Christmas mode. On Saturday Daddy got the Christmas lights all set up with the timer and put good old Santa on guard by the front door. Saturday night saw us take in the Santa Claus parade for the first time as a family - I've walked in the parade before with the Girl Guides. It's way colder sitting and watching, even with this nice weather. After the parade we picked up some fast food, which Talia turned her nose up at. (She threw her Baby Burger over the edge of her highchair for the boys to enjoy, and tucked into her green beans, cheese, multigrain crackers, and raspberries while Mama & Daddy enjoyed their A&W.) On Sunday we got to see the lights in action, and tried to teach Talia who Santa was ("Danta!") and what he says ("Bo, bo bo!")

We've also been helping Santa with a little Christmas shopping, as we picked up a kitchen set & toddler bed to go in Talia's new Big Girl bedroom. We had a hard time finding a food set to go with the kitchen that included healthy options, since most of them come full of cake, pie, fries, nuggets, hotdogs etc. You know. All the delicious food I think is a treat, that m'girl spits out in disdain. We eventually got some nice fruits & veggies at Toys R Us.

Our Christmas preparations continued this morning when we went to Staples to purchase some Christmas paper for Grammie's annual holiday letter, and then scored the first box of Christmas organges of the season at Superstore. Holla.

Clearly, we went from 0 to 60 and exhausted Talia. She's going to have to pace herself if she's going to make it through the holidays!

We Love These Lazy Fridays

Talia and I are having a rare stay-at-home day today. When I decided to go back to work half-time, I thought I was going to have all kinds of time on my hands. As it turns out, Talia sleeps away the afternoon so I try to be home right after lunch most days, so that only leaves 2 or 3 mornings a week, depending on my work schedule. One of these mornings is usually taken up with Talia's preschool program and a grocery run. Another is usually spent at the Doc's office, since between me being pregnant & Talia picking up every germ that goes through her daycare, we are regulars there. I try to keep the third morning for playdates and visiting, although it only happens every second week, and often something comes up. Like today, for example, when we were expecting Shaw anytime between 8 and noon, and the cable guy finally rolled in at 11:55.

(I don't know why I felt the need to appear cool for the cable guy, but I did my best to assure him that "we used to have digital cable, it's just that we moved out of the city, you see, and digital cable just made it to our tiny town....." and "oh, no, you don't have to hook up the VCR; we don't really use it anymore....." Yep, we've really leapt back into the '90s with the installation of our new digital box this morning. Which is approximately 1/6 the size of the original digital box we had the last time we had digital cable, lol.)

So now I have diapers in the wash, a relatively clean house (at least until El Destructo wakes up from her nap), 2 snoozing puppies, and lots of time to get supper ready. I'm not gonna lie to you; I'm putting my feet up and enjoying my life of luxury. At least until the washing machine beeps.

She's a Lady....bug

Hallowe'en has come and gone and was a smashing success. Grandma & Grandpa came in for the festivities, since they usually only get 4 kids at their place, and we've been bragging about our 150+ trick-or-treaters for 3 years now. In a town that is supposedly home to 400 people, how do we get so many visitors on Hallowe'en night? I guess all those city kids know that the shorty-tally couple with the cute ladybug and 2 bad chugs in St. A. give out a bag of chips AND a huge handful of candy & chocolate bars.

Grandma & I took Talia to a few houses - our 2 closest neighbours, the new neighbours 2 doors down (I figured I should introduce myself as the proud owner of the 2 dogs that get their 2 dogs all worked up everyday) and another friend down the street. When we came back in, Talia cried, picked up her coat, crawled over to the front door and pointed outside - so Daddy and Grandpa took her out for a nice, long walk around the neighbourhood so she could see all the kids & pumpkins some more. We ended up getting only about half the kids we usually do, so we had lots of time for visiting & eating treats. What a great night.

Our favourite combination of costumes for the night were the 4 girls who came as a bottle of ketchup, a clown, and 2 Micheal Jacksons. And my personal favourite from last year was back in his crowd-pleasing costume - a huge gift box, beautifully wrapped, with a tag that said "To: The Ladies, From: God." Runners-up were the giant lego block and the puffy snowman. I'm so sad that I only have a few more Hallowe'ens to have my way with m'ladybug, before she wants to be a (yawn) princess or (groan) Spiderman.

Yesterday we all had chocolate hangovers as we said bye-bye to Grandma & Grandpa. Talia (clearly inspired by Skyler's presence at Book Club yesterday afternoon) took 3 wobbly steps last night. I fear it is too little, too late to stop The Big Appointment on Wednesday, where the Dr. will give us the official diagnosis as "Lazy, with an underlying case of So Cute People Don't Stop Picking Me Up."