By George! I Think She's Got It!!!

It's been just over two weeks (okay, 15 days to be exact!) since we more like I began potty re-training Little One.

I'm not going to count my chickens before they hatch, but I think she's finally got it! Little One has gone for over two weeks of no diapers!  Basically, while we've been on Christmas holiday, I've been letting her roam around the house sans diaper and sans panties. She seems to prefer to go in the buff anyway.  Can't say I blame her. Potty training is a lot easier without any hindrances. No cumbersome pants, tights, or anything for that girlie.

I've taken to heart what you - my dear readers, friends, family, and even strangers have told me. I've been basically easing up on the whole potty training thing and letting Little One do things at her own pace. Funny, now that I've put potty training on the back burner, she's seemed to take a keen interest in it. Go figure!

Perfect timing too, since all the cleaning up after accidents has had me super stressed. I've got this ginormous zit on my face from the stress. I have pretty good skin and only break out if I'm under extreme stress. Who  knew that potty training would be so stressful? My poor kid. She's got a mom who hates mess, disorder, chaos...and poop!

Little One refuses to use the potty and has opted for the toilet instead! She also refuses to wear diapers and pull-ups. It's panties or nothing for that kid! She hasn't had any accidents either! Oops. Except for the time she pooped on her Grampy's bed and peed on his kitchen floor last week. Other than that, no accidents! Oh, we won't ever let her live down the story of the giant poop she left on her Grampy's bed when she was three years old. She casually said, "Grampy. I pooped on your bed". Now Grampy is afraid to babysit her on his own, for fear there will be a repeat of the poop on bed story.  In all fairness, she hasn't had an accident since.

It just seems that she all of a sudden became a big kid. It actually makes me feel really, really sad! She's THREE! She's growing up far too quickly for my liking. How on earth did that happen?!

The big test was taking her on a day trip (a two hours each way). The amazing thing is that Little One did not have any accidents and asked to go to the washroom when she needed to go. Yes, I am fiercely proud of my little munchkin.

Could this be the end of stinky poopy diapers? Could it?

Happy Holidays

Oops! I Did It Again!

I don't know what possessed me to do it.

Parents all over the world do it every day.

We commit this unspeakable crime all the time. We think it's our God given right to do this to our children.

Yes, ladies and gentlemen. I am talking about butchering our children's hair!

Unless you are a professional hair dresser, please put the scissors down.

My little one's hair was getting quite long, but I didn't want to cut it. I love being able to fix her hair and make her hair look pretty.

However, it was growing in such an unruly manner and always looked so messy and unkempt. Yes, it was cute, but it was always in her face!

I did it. It was as though some unseen force was guiding my hands. Before I knew it, I had chopped off FOUR inches of her baby fine hair! A little crooked okay, A LOT crooked!, a little lop-sided, but finally not in her face anymore!

I almost cried! WHAT did I just do?

Hubby came home to see me (obviously distraught) and looked over at Little One, who was dancing around in circles, showing off her pixie 'do.

"I cut her hair! It was driving me crazy that it was always so messy looking. Now she looks so grown up!", I wailed.

"It looks good. Don't worry. It will grow back. It actually suits her!", Hubby said.

I don't know what it is about haircuts and children, but it just makes them seem like they're no longer babies. Yes, I realize Little One is no longer a baby.  This just reminds me that she's growing up so fast and will be going to school before I know it.

An Olde Fashioned Christmas

We are blessed to have a fabulous group of friends on the Island. We really enjoy our dinner parties and play dates with our friends and their kids. There are about six families with children close to Little One's age (some a few years older and some a bit younger) and we have become somewhat of a big "family". Being an Island "transplant", this means a lot to me.

It is really important for me to have good friends with whom we can do things together, just hang out, be there for each other and include everyone's kids and spouses/partners. The support, the friendship, the love, the laughter...these are all things I need living so far away from my friends and family in the city.

This year, our group of friends decided to have an "Olde Fashioned Christmas" and show the kids that Christmas is not all about the buying and receiving. It's not about material things. It's about love, family, friends, the Spirit of Christmas, the giving, and the doing things from the heart. Coming from varying degrees of Christianity, we didn't get heavily into the explanation of Christmas and Jesus' birth. Also, most of the kids are too young to understand still.

Anyway, we drew names and we had to give a handmade/homemade present to the child whose name we chose.  Little One helped me make this for the friend whose name she drew:

Sand Art Brownies (in a jar)

1/2 c. all purpose flour
3/4 tsp. salt
1/3 c. baking/unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 c. all purpose flour
2/3 c. brown sugar
2/3 c. white sugar
1 c. chocolate chips
Little One sprinkled oatmeal into the mix because she likes oatmeal in everything!

In a clean 1 quart/1 L mason jar, layer all the above ingredients in the order that they are listed.
On a decorative recipe card (we just used a Christmas card with Little One in a Santa's hat), write the following:
Sand Art Brownies: 1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease one 9x9 inch square baking pan. 2. Pour the contents of the jar into a large bowl, and mix well. 3. Stir in 1 teaspoon vanilla, 2/3 cup vegetable oil, and 3 eggs. Beat until just combined. 4. Pour the batter into the prepared pan, and bake in the preheated oven for 25 to 30 minutes.
The little girl who received the gift from Little One was so excited! C'mon. What kid doesn't love baking errrr...make that EATING! brownies!!

I was amazed at some of the presents the kids made (or helped make!). One child received a "painting" that was made of crayons! The person who gave the gift hot glued different coloured crayons onto canvas and then used a hairdryer to melt the crayons. All of the colours melted into each other and made a rainbow. It was stunning!

Another child received a cricket house - complete with a live cricket and other insects for the cricket to eat!

There was a handmade Christmas stocking and a ballerina's tutu. One child received a CD with children's Christmas tunes. That brought me back to the days when I was a teenager and made mixed tapes for my friends. I'd sit for hours and "tape" my favourite songs off the radio. Ahhh...the memories!  I guess essentially, this is what we are trying to share with our children. Building memories.

It was such a great gathering and it really touched my heart to see all of our kids playing so nicely together and the adults engaging in conversation. It makes being away from my hometown and family a lot easier. The Island is starting to feel like "home".

36 Things

Here we are again. Another year older. Here are 36 things about me:

1. I am very fortunate to have such a great family and good friends.

2. I need to appreciate my blessings more.

3. I need to focus less on things that are beyond my control.

4. I need to learn how to make time for myself and for my family.

5. Now that I'm no longer in my 20s, I realize anything more than one glass of wine or one cocktail does me in for the night.

6. I would really like to stay in with my family more and hang out at home more.

7. I thrive on being busy and have a hard time just chilling out.

8. I get really irritated with mess and hate it when my house is in disarray.

9. I  have a 3 year old who insists on keeping the house in complete disarray.

10. I never realized how difficult it would be to live on a farm and to be a farmer's wife.

11. I love our life and know that this is fabulous for our child.

12. I also get stressed out about our lifestyle. Farming is not easy.

13. I am surrounded by so many amazing, wonderful people and I am thankful to have each and every one of them in my life.

14. I was always worried about all the things George Orwell talked about in his book, "1984".

15. Now, my life is all about social media. What would Orwell think of this? Yikes!

16. I never knew how exhausting (mentally and physically) it would be to potty train a toddler.

17. Sometimes I think about how fun and free my life once was and how I miss traveling and living/working abroad.

18. Then I realize how much I love the security of knowing that my home is here and that I  have a wonderful husband and daughter at home.

19. I am still toying with the idea of having a second child.

20. Part of me really wants to have a sibling for Little One.

21. The other part dreads having another baby because life is really crazy right now.

22. I'm on the fence about enrolling Little One in school next year.

23. Part of me is excited and thinks Little One is ready for school, but the other part thinks, "She's only 3, all day/5 days a week and a very long bus ride just seems too much for someone so little".

24. I also don't want to let  her go yet, because I feel as though she needs time to just be a kid and the majority of her life she will be in school. I'd like to keep her "mine" for a bit longer.

25. I love cooking for my family and friends.

26. I hate doing dishes.

27. I love doing laundry.

28. I hate putting laundry away.

29. I need to practice being more patient.

30. Whining and screaming really annoy me.

31. I miss my grandmother and wish I could be in the Philippines with her right now.

32. I love love driving and the 9.5 hour and 11 hour road trips to visit family are fun for me.

33. I hate driving in the city.

34. I still suck at reverse parking and parallel parking.

35. I have great intentions, but lately I'm lacking in the execution side of things. I've had Christmas cards ready to be sent out in the first week of December, yet here they are still sitting on my desk. New Year's cards it is then!

36. I thought I was turning 37 this year and was slightly relieved that I'm just 36. I don't know why. Age is just a number. :)

This year, my husband and friends planned a wonderful surprise for me.
READ MORE HERE.

Parenting 101: You FAIL!

No one ever tells you the ins and outs of parenting.  Sure, some people offer a few pearls of wisdom here and there, but no one really ever tells you the reality of it all and how difficult and unpredictable things can be when you have a little one.

I am always amazed at parents who seemingly parent so naturally. It's as though nothing bothers them. They never stumble, slip, or fall. I am secretly envious of parents who have it "together". Seriously? You don't have moments where you feel you need to lock yourself in the bathroom and cry? Oh, wait. Did I say that out loud?

Then there are the not so serious moments of parenting slip ups. Though they may not be detrimental to my child's well-being, they're still the mistakes that in hindsight make you think, "Why did you possibly think that was a good idea?!"

Case in point:
Getting into the Holiday spirit, I wanted to get Little One excited about Christmas too. She loves hearing about Baby Jesus in the manger and the star of Bethlehem. She just turned 3 the other week and is more interested in that than in jolly 'ol Saint Nick (which is totally fine with us). This said, she has expressed an interest in the festive holiday with all the music and decorations. She loves the lights and sparkly everything.

"Mama, I yuuuuv Chrimass!"

"Oh, that's good! I'm so  happy to hear you love Christmas!"

I took her to see Santa Claus at the mall and the poor kid cried bloody murder. The tears! It was heartbreaking!

"I don't want him! I don't want him! Mommy, I don't like Santa!!!!", she screamed through her tears. "I don't want him! He's bad! He's a bad guy!!!!"

No photo with Santa this year, I suppose.

 Little One's photo with Santa last year.

When I think of it, I can't really blame her. I teach her to never go with strangers, yet I plunk her onto the lap of a strange man in a red suit with a huge beard and a bunch of elves standing beside him? Yeah. Totally unrealistic expectations. What was I thinking? Well, I guess I wasn't thinking.

Then, I wanted to share something special from my childhood. In the weeks leading up to Christmas, it's been a long lived tradition for me to watch all the Christmas classics on TV. This year, now that she just turned 3, I wanted to watch Frosty the Snowman, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, Charlie Brown Christmas, How the Grinch Stole Christmas, etc.

I bought her a collection of Christmas classics on DVD.

"I want the reindeer one!"

When we got to the scene where Rudolph and the dentist elf meet the Abominable Snowman, Little One started screaming.

"I don't like him! Turn it off! I'm scared! I'm scared! I don't like monsters!!"

I tried to explain that he wasn't really a bad monster and that in the end, he helps the elves decorate the Christmas tree. She wasn't having any of that. To be honest, I totally forgot about the "monster" scene. Actually, I didn't really think she'd be scared of him.

We haven't even watched The Grinch or Frosty, and she has already decided she HATES all Christmas DVDs and will not watch them.

She is totally uninterested. What fun.