Gingers are not to be trusted with scissors

So I have this theory that you have to give children a glass cup so they learn how to be gentle with it.  You have to let children use scissors so they learn how to be safe with them.

This child is testing ALL my theories!

Last December, Ginger cut her hair.  How, you ask?

Sometime in the fall, she decided that she didn't want me to cut her bangs anymore. She wanted them to "grow long like the rest of her hair".  Sure, no problem.

Then just as they are almost long enough to tuck behind her ear, she has had enough, she wants me to cut her bangs.  Sure, no problem.

After her bath, I set her up and trim her bangs.  I remind her (as with every hair cut) that only adults cut hair. "Okay Mommy, no problem"

That night was rough, Red woke up three times. Ginger woke up twice.  The kids slept in so I took advantage.  9:30 rolls around and Red wakes up screaming.  I roll out of bed and Ginger is standing at the foot at my bed, staring at me! I rub my eyes and ask "What are you doing?". He response is "What, Mommy?"  And then I see her hair... or should I say lack thereof...

I didn't want to spaz on her so I sent her downstairs. Now she is crying and Red is still crying.  As soon as I open Red's bedroom door, I can smell the vomit.  That's why he was crying all night!  After bathing him I go back into my room and see the puddle of hair at the foot of my bed.  An indication that she stood at the foot of my bed, with a pair of scissor and cut her hair while staring at me!

After a looooong conversation about what scissors are used for... blah, blah, blah it was decided that she couldn't have any scissors until her hair grows back!

Last month, her scissor privileges were returned.

Last night, Ginger walks up to me and stares at me.  You know, the "I did something I'm not supposed to and I am sure you can plainly see that, but I don't want to tell you" look.

I see red smear all over he hands and shirt. "Is it marker?" "No." "Is it make-up?" "No." "Is it nail polish?" "No. It just keep coming out of my finger."

What?!

She had found my rotary cutter (which was at the back of my desk, in the pencil holder, behind the lamp!) and sliced her finger. Then as her thumb kept bleeding, she would wipe it on herself. Come on!  So I put them on a decorative shelf that I can hardly reach.  But the more  I think about it the more I realize that there is only so much you can do.

I remember learning how to climb into my kitchen counter, with out a stool or chair, so I could get at things that I wasn't supposed to touch.  Ginger is so much like me; she will figure this out too.  That's not to say that I will leave things laying around but now I am worried about the knives that are on the magnetic knife rack, behind the kitchen faucet.  If she is determined to slice her arm off I feel like she will find a way! Ack!!  I wonder if I can google "what to do when your child keeps finding your hidden sharp things"?

Hang on, I am going to to try that...

... okay, I found this: Keeping Kids Safe  ... practical advice, just not what I need! LOL

Well, in other news:
How do I remove blood stains from a cotton t-shirt?

Easter Traditions

I don't remember Easter being a big deal in our house.

I remember Palm Sunday because we all got big palm leaves and we would bring them upstairs, at the end of church and walk down the isle, laying the leaves down as we walked to the front.  I remember my Mom would take great pride in hiding the eggs so well that we wouldn't find them until the next day! That's about it though...

There was a while, before I got married, that my in-laws would make a big dinner but that kind of faded away too.

This year, Ginger is 3.5 years old  For the first time in my life, I feel like I have a solid understanding of the spiritual side of Easter and I am excited to share that with her. I posted about our Lent Jar and she is really digging it!  Every day she either does something on purpose (so she can add a bean to the jar) or she realizes hours later that her actions deserve a bean.

So I have the important parts covered, now I want to start some fun traditions!

We try to take them to an outdoor Easter egg hunt every year, I put a little bag of carrots on Ginger's door on Easter morning (a sign the Easter bunny has been there) and I love painting blown out eggs with her.  According to my photo album, Red slept through most of his first Easter!

The photo with the big yellow egg was taken by Danielle Valiquette

I remember my dresses...

Every Easter, my Mother, Grandmother and I would pick out a dress.  Most of the time my Grandmother had it purchased for me in August...

I couldn't find any photos to share with you but as soon as I found these images through Google, all the memories came flooding back :)

I had the purse, the shoes, the frilly socks, the hat... the only way you can tell this photo isn't me is the red hair!

Why did the dresses have so much fabric!?

I don't care if Ginger wears a dress or if Red wears a suit (although, I have a small sweater vest obsession!) I am super excited to get them dressed up for Easter photos! How convenient is it, that I am a photographer!

Since Red was sleeping when my bunny sessions were all done, I am going to schedule a time slot for my own children so I don't miss out! LOL

Do you have any Easter traditions?

When babies turn into 3 year olds...

Source



It's 11pm.

It's dark outside but the moon is full and bright. So bright, I can see the clouds drifting across the night sky.

The only noise I hear is Adam laughing as he plays XBOX.

Red is fast asleep.

I hear a thud. Ginger fell out of bed. A minute later, little footsteps tell me I am about to have a visitor.

When I ask her what happened, she responds with a shrug and says "I just love you."

How can I send her back to bed? Besides, I am in desperate need of some snuggle time.

As we lay in bed, I stare at the moon and cry.

Who is this 3 year old? She was 2 only a few months ago! She was learning to walk only last summer! Well, maybe it has been a little longer than that...

That thought only reminds me how quickly Red is growing.

I wanted a snuggle. I didn't feel like crying - maybe it's good for me...maybe not.

Now all I can think about is how much i want another baby. Would a third child satisfy my baby fetish? Probably not. Would I cry when that baby is 3. Most likely. I still want more babies though.

I can barely see the moon now, it is quickly moving through the sky. And Ginger has readjusted so she is laying on my face. No room for tears now! Time for sweet little redheads to go to bed.

The moon rises and sets. It follows it's path through the sky.

Life goes on.

Babies or no babies - I will suck up every moment I am blessed with.

I pray.

"Lord,

Help me focus on what I have instead of what I don't have.

Don't let me miss a single moment.

Amen"

Kidney beans are exciting again!

This is the first time I will be observing Lent.  The only reason I haven't in the past, is because I felt I didn't really understand the whole point.  This year something clicked.  It's more than just giving up something for 40 days.  It's about giving up that thing to remind you to give back - to make a sacrifice like our Lord did.

I decided Tim Horton's was getting the boot and any money I would have spent there will go back to the church.  I feel really good about it!  Until I realize I had to explain this to Ginger.  The kids go along with all my crazy food restrictions and detoxes so this would be no different.  She was so confused why we weren't having Timmy's.  She even asked if we weren't aloud to have sugar, again.  I probably should have just said yes, but I tried to make this a teachable moment.  I kinda failed. She was more confused than ever.

Pinterest and Google to the rescue!

I came across a post from Montessori Candy about the "sacrifice jar".  This is exactly what I was looking for.  Every time you sacrifice something, for someone else, you add a bean to the jar.  At Easter, all the beans turn to jelly beans!  I tried my best to explain what the word sacrifice means.  I tried to explain it in terms she would understand.  "Remember when Daddy is late for work and we drive him instead playing?  That's a sacrifice".  "Remember when Red really wanted some of your milk this morning and you let him have a sip before you had a sip? That's a sacrifice."

This is a visual reminder that all your small sacrifices can add up to something wonderful.  And it also gives a purpose or meaning to Easter that little minds can understand.
"Why do we get candy and chocolate at Easter?"  To be  honest, I have always wondered the same... even when I was little. 
We will do one jar for the whole family - I don't want it to become a competition (and Red can't exactly participate). 

The storage jar in the cupboard

We just started today and she is SO excited! Every time she shares a toy or give Red a hug she comes running over to ask if she can add a bean to the jar.  At this point she thinks every positive action/behavior gets a bean and I am going to go with it.  The more we talk about it I think she will learn the true meaning of sacrifice...

Adding a bean

...and maybe she will cry a less when I tell her no Tim Horton's!

Leftover Soup

For a long time, now, I have been trying to get organized with a meal plan.  Last year I found this book called More Time Mom's Family Meals.  It has 6 weeks of meals with a shopping list for each week.  This worked for a while but it just didn't fit out family's needs.  I'm a vegetarian (the rest of the family eats both kinds of meals), and most of the meals have meat in them and I am not that good at translating the recipes into meat-free. 

Since finding that book, I have decided to eat more "clean" diet.  No refined sugar, very little processed/pre-packaged foods and no artificial preservatives.  On top of that, my husband is making HUGE changes to his eating habits and for the next little while we need to avoid pasta (as the main dish), casseroles and heavy sauces.  Quite simply the perfectly organized meal plan I want to create has a whole lot of random restrictions!

So, for now, I am going to try to break down what I want to accomplish and work on each goal separately:

1. Use every leftover.

2. Double 1 meal every 2 weeks so it can be frozen for a later date.

3. Start a "Freezer Meal Exchange" group.

4. Come up with a meal plan every week, for 6 weeks.

5. Create a ready made shopping list for each of the 6 weeks.

Task #1 (and #4)

Freezer soup.

One of my friends showed me how she adds leftovers to a container that is left in the freezer.  I thought that was a great idea but at the time I was intimidated by cooking so the idea was stored away.  Now, I think I am ready to do it - I mean it can't be any worse then it is right now! If the soup turns out gross then it gets thrown out - just the same as all those leftovers getting thrown out now...

On the menu this week:

• Moroccan Chickpea Stew with couscous {recipe from a good friend}
• Broccoli, whole roasted chicken/pan fried tofu with salt and pepper, carrots, butternut squash and potato
• Orange marinated salmon, mixed salad (with homemade dressing), rice {recipe: More Time Mom's}
• Beef/tofu stir fry with peppers and rice noddles {recipe: More Time Mom's}
• Asparagus and cheese quiche with whole wheat pie crust and salad{pie crust recipe}

As for the soup...

I feel like I still need a plan so I started with some veggie broth and added the leftover carrots, broccoli and chicken.  I will add either some leftover rice or rice noodles (depending how the stir fry is made). I usually just make veggie puree soups but this one will be more like a chicken noodle with chunks of veggies. Not sure if that is enough for 2 3/4 servings of soup but we will see!

p.s. Just in case you are curious: I don't eat chicken but I try to have a serving of fish twice a month. This will be the first time, in a long time, that I have had meat in my soup...

Red's Dedication

The Dedication 

Wondering around during the service!

A Noah and the Ark music box.

Invitation 

I created this invite with a Photoshop template.  I really tried to find the template so I could give credit to the designer, but I just can't find it again.  I am a big fan of emailing invitations.  No wasted paper, no lost invite because it fell off your fridge and no wasted $$.  I will call the people that may not have email or if I know they don't check their email often.

Food

Big spender loves an excuse to prepare 20lbs of meat!  Luckily for our budget, I had purchased some ribs and steaks a couple of months ago and stuck them into the deep freezer.

He made:- Ribs

- Steak Skewers

- Meatballs in Diana sauce (in the crock pot)

We bought:

- Greek Pasta Salad, Egg Salad, Potato Salad

- Hotdogs (bleh!)

- Shrimp ring

For the ribs:

He used a dry rub recipe from the book The Barbecue! Bible.

Steak Marinade:

T-Bone Tom's Choice Steak Marinade

Recipe courtesy Barry Terrell, owner of T-Bone Tom's in Kemah, TX.

Prep Time: 10 min

Inactive Prep Time: 10 hr 0 min

Cook Time: --

Level: Easy

Serves: 4 servings

Ingredients

• 2 cups vegetable oil
• 1 cup soy sauce
• 1 cup Worcestershire sauce
• 1/2 cup pineapple juice
• 2 tablespoons granulated garlic
• 2 tablespoons freshly ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons dry mustard
  

Directions:

Mix all ingredients in bowl, and marinate steaks overnight or for 10 hours in refrigerator. Makes enough marinade for 4 steaks.

Table Decorations

Food Signs

I used the bottom of the invitation to create little "food signs" (is there a real word for these?).

Centerpiece

I literally covered a glass applesauce jay with blue tissue paper and stuck a big wooden skewer in it.  I taped a photo of Red onto the skewer and presto-blamo, we have a centerpiece!

Tissue paper pom poms

I used this video...

...and this blog...

...to figure out how to make them.

Did you know that orange coloured tissue paper is NOT a popular colour? I was all over the city trying to find it!

Dollarama: Nothing. 
Random Convienience Store: Nope
Zellers: Zip. 
New Walmart: Zilch.
Michael's: Zero! - Come on Michael's... really!?!

I am glad I had the smarts to call Party Packagers (in Ancaster) before driving out there!  Honestly, if they didn't have it, I might have cried... over orange tissue paper... stoooopid Walmart!... I mean tissue paper ;)

None the less, we had an awesome gathering of awesome people who will love and support our little Red.  We are so blessed to have such supportive family members and friends.  If our support circle wasn't so large, we would have so many more struggles than we tend to think we do.  Our kids make our life full - our family makes it happen.  Love you all!

Take care of your golf balls first...the rest is just sand!

I came across this story on Facebook, the other day, and it has really stuck with me.  Our family has gone through a lot in the last couple of years and we are starting to pick up the pieces.  I was so consumed with all the things I was expected to accomplish in the day that I let it overwhelm me.  I knew it was important to take time for myself but how could I ever enjoy "me time" when I wasn't making time for my own family (let alone good friends)?!  These days, the house is under control  - within reasonble expectaions ;) - and  important relationships are mending. I think its time I thought about my priorities without making excuses why I can't work within them.

When things in your life seem almost too much to handle, when 24 hours in a day is not enough, remember the mayonnaise jar and two cups of coffee.

 A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him. When the class began, wordlessly, he picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and fills it with golf balls. He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.



The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else. He asked once more if the jar was full. The students responded with a unanimous “YES”.

The professor then produced two cups of coffee from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar, effectively filling the empty space between the sand. The students laughed.

“Now,” said the professor, as the laughter subsided, “I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life. The golf balls are the important things - dreams, family, health, friends, and favorite passions. Things, that if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full. The pebbles are the things that matter like your job, house, and car. The sand is everything else - the small stuff.” he said.

“If you put the sand into the jar first,” he continued, “There is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls. The same goes for life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff, you will never have room for the things that are important to you...” he told them.

“So... pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness. Worship with your family. Play with your children. Take your partner out to dinner. Spend time with good friends. There will always be time to clean the house and fix the dripping tap. Take care of the golf balls first -- the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand.”

One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the coffee represented. The professor smiled and said, “I'm glad you asked. It just goes to show you that no matter how full your life may seem, there's always room for a couple of cups of coffee with a friend."

Goodbye Sucky!

Binky, Nungy, Suce, Soother, Pacifier... apparently, there are LOTS of names for that little devil!
And as I try to write this post, Red is whining that I won't give it to him!

Before I was in the trenches, I read that the developmental need to suck is well gone by the age of 6 months.  In my mind that meant no soother after 6 months. Big Spender and I both didn't like to see a child running around or trying to talk with a soother in his mouth and we agreed it would be better to get rid of it sooner than later.

There is a small chance I was wrong...

Ginger never was really into the soother. We would wait until we tried other things to help her calm down and then offer the soother.  She would clamp he lips tight!  The only time she ever wanted it is if she was already calm.  Around  6.5 months we just stopped offering it to her and she seemed fine with that.

Ginger

Ginger - Toes are WAY more tasty!

Red, on the other hand LOVES his suce.  From the moment he was born I said, "he is either going to be a thumb sucker or crazy for a soother".  I don't really remember him sucking his fingers at all but once we had a good latch (for breastfeeding) established he was delighted we introduced him to a soother.  I would try to only offer it when he was fussing (which was all the time!) but I soon attached that sucker (haha) to his shirt and we were all happier!

Red

Isn't it funny how siblings can be so different?

Now Red is 16 months old.  The suce usually hangs out in his crib and he has it for sleeping.  But lately he has been extra fussy.  I think there is a good chance he is teething - but I am tired of making excuses to keep the thing!  A few months ago he created a sign for soother where he makes an O shape with his mouth and taps his index finger to his lips.  Super cute when he is 9 months old... but hard to say no to because he is trying to hard to communicate without whining/screaming.

So now I am finding ways to get rid of the soother.  Ways that will minimize the amount of stress this will cause for Red and the family. So far I have:

- Snipping the tip off.
- Attaching it to a toy and then eventually he will just have the toy.
- Poke holes into it so there is less resistance - therefor less interest.
- Attaching it to a helium balloon and have a "release party"!
- Put it in a build-a-bear.
- Create a story about the "Soother Fairy".
- Give it to a baby in the family and explain that it's time to "pass it on" to a baby now.

The last four are really only good if the child is old enough to understand what is going on.  I really hope his soother is gone well before then!  He has become quite dependant on it.  It took us a long time to get him to self-soothe to sleep so I would like him to learn how to, eventually, do that all the time.  This is also why I am afraid to say goodbye sucky, for good.  It is only now I would call him a good sleeper - a 2-2.5 hour nap everyday and sleeping about 11 hours most nights.  What is going to happen when the soother is gone?  How long will the chaos last?  I can't handle this!?  Phew -  As I often say to Ginger: "Deep breathe in... and blooooooooow".  Ok we can do this! ........... Once I return from my week away at the end of the month ;)

Have you ever had to do this transition?