petitcollage

I just got one. I just got one. I just got one. I have been waiting for months and months and months to get one of these wooden collages from the etsy seller petitcollage. I waited so long in fact that the prices went up, but I feel certain that the piece will be worth it. I love her whimsical work. It is really so perfect for Norah's room.

I have been an on and off etsy addict since my brother's partner and my friend Marla told me about the site a few months ago. Like everyone else, I love looking at my seller's favorites, and their favorites, and so on and so on. I discovered etsy before I discovered the blogging world though, so I did not have nay real direction and ended up finding loads and loads of nothing. now that I am more familiar with some of the sellers, I waste less time on the site and have a whole lot of fun. I'll post a picture of the collage when it comes in.

Outdoorsy Art

I think I am falling in love with the online crafting world. The only problem i, I have too many ideas and not enough time in my lifetime to get them done. While I am reading my daily list of blogs, I feel my heart starting to pound with some excitement and some near panic--which project should I do with the kids tomorrow? how much time have I wasted with my children already? how many moments have I lost? I find that when I am feeling good and doing something new and different with either Norah or Harvey, each day fills me with wonder and awe--at the human body, at the human mind...

One day last week while Harvey was sleeping, Norah and I went outside looking for things in nature that we loved--well, really I was collecting those things and she was hoarding her new Dora doll from our neighbor Maia. Anyways, we brought some leaves, pine needles, and a pine cone inside and made some pretty, happy pictures.

Norah made this one:


And I made this one:

Spring Cleaning

Brian and I have undertaken a pretty large job in the past couple of days. To say that we are cleaning out for spring would be an understatement. We are giving our house a makeover for a couple of reasons. I have to say, it is such a good feeling to get rid of stuff that has been hanging around for years. Although, while I used to feel a complete sense of relief when I gave stuff away, I do feel a twinge of guilt when I do so now--how could I reuse this? I gave away some old curtains today and wondered if I should have held on to them--I could have dyed them and used them as dress-up scarves for Norah and Harvey in a couple of years (or months!).

Our house is already starting to take on a whole new looks (pictures of the finished product are forthcoming). We have repainted the living room and entrance a very dreamy, light shade of grey. Our designer neighbor (the one who chose the color) would never call it grey, but that is what it looks like to me. While the walls are pretty, all of our furniture appears very dark and heavy in their new surroundings. I think I must migrate to warm colors--I loved the prior color on our walls--an almost mustard yellow. Tomorrow, Wilmer is going to finish painting the sunroom/my NEW office.

On another note, I LOVE the cleaning product pictured above, Ecover. It can be found at Whole Foods. I spray it on my granite countertops every night as I am finishing up my work in the kitchen. There is something about the smell of it that is so soothing to me. It signals an end to the work of the day and a time for relaxation.

Is It Here?

Spring
Originally uploaded by nssmith2020

I am afraid to even say the S*****g word because to jinx our beautiful weather. Today the sky was a clear blue with thin translucent clouds like torn pieces of tissue paper scattered about. We spent some time outside today, trying to escape the painting that is going on inside the house. All of us found signs of Spring in the front yard--Norah discovered the purple flowering peeking up here, Harvey found a bush to shake, and I, well I just soaked up as much of the sun as my skin could absorb. I even got out the bubbles that have been sitting in my car since last summer and blew a few rounds for H and N. Norah just ran around the yard screaming at them because she "wanted" them and they were floating away from her or simply disappearing before her eyes. I was actually mildly amused by it until I really thought about how this whole experience might feel to a 2 year old--something beautiful that you want to touch and hold disappears the minute you reach your destination or floats away from your little grasp.
Norah is trying to grasp the concept of cause and effect, and not really grasping it just yet. I hear her talking to her dolls, to herself and to me and lately, the conversations have gone something like this:

Me: Norah, what did you do at school today.
Norah: Ahhhmmm... crayons.
Me: Really, what did you do with those crayons.
Norah: ...because...because you will choke on it.

It is really pretty funny. And Harvey, he knows exactly what he wants and if he doesn't have it the moment that he realizes that he wants it, well then he is mad, REALLY mad. So, his personality is starting to show through too. I love them.

Daffodils

I loved this poem in high school and recently came across it in one of Norah's poetry books.

I WANDER'D lonely as a cloud
That floats on high o'er vales and hills,
When all at once I saw a crowd,
A host of golden daffodils,
Beside the lake, beneath the trees, 5
Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.

Continuous as the stars that shine
And twinkle on the Milky Way,
They stretch'd in never-ending line
Along the margin of a bay: 10
Ten thousand saw I at a glance,
Tossing their heads in sprightly dance.

The waves beside them danced, but they
Outdid the sparkling waves in glee:—
A poet could not but be gay 15
In such a jocund company!
I gazed, and gazed, but little thought
What wealth the show to me had brought:

For oft, when on my couch I lie
In vacant or in pensive mood, 20
They flash upon that inward eye
Which is the bliss of solitude;
And then my heart with pleasure fills,
And dances with the daffodils.

Wordsworth

The Tuna Tartar's Revenge

Another case of food poisoning struck me again last night. I don't know why I fall victim to this so much--I am not even a very aventurous eater. This time it was from the tuna that I ate last night. Cold sweats. Watery mouth. Squeezing, squeezing, squeezing. I need to look at happy things today so I included this image of N and H sleeping in the car over the weekend.

Braving New York City

Today, Nonna and I took the kids to the Children's Museum on the Upper West Side. It has been a few months since I brought them there during the week. They love the city and they loved the museum even more. Harvey's eyes widened when we emerged from the Lincoln Tunnel and they didn't close until he melted down in the little restaurant on Broadway (post-museum). For him, it was a wild frenzy of, "S'tha" s and trips down slides. For Norah, it was Dora the Explorer, pretend fire trucks, and colored balls that could be thrown anywhere.

Because I am coming to the less is more philosophy of parenting (influenced by Rahima Baldwin's book), I wondered while in there if what I was doing was truly good for my children. I mean there were just masses and mounds upon mounds of things for them to touch, climb on, slide down, etc... I looked around at many of the mothers and nannies (all thinking that we were giving our children this great experience) and wondered if we could just as well take them to the park. I don't want me children to need to be entertained or to be victims of marketing (I wonder what transactions took place between the creators of Dora and the museum decision makers to get a whole floor for the Dora exhibit). Of course, Norah wanted a Dora doll before leaving the place and then, oh yeah, we have to get Harvey a Diego plate. We live in a crazy, crazy world.

Easter Eggs!

I remember last year about this time wishing that our Norah was old enough to dye Easter eggs. She grew up so fast in this last year--I hope I never wish her older again. Now I want these days to slow down. I want her to keep saying, "Pick you up," when she wants me (or anyone else to hold her), I want her to keep saying, "Dadee" when she really means, "What is that?" and I want her to keep calling band-aids, ban-bans. These days they are going by at whirlwind speeds.

So we did dye Easter eggs today--a new and nifty no vinegar way. I was kind of looking forward to mixing those little Paas bisquits into vinegar and boiling water, but alas those days, too, are no more. The babies of 2008 put their boiled eggs in a bag, pout dye into the bag and VOILA!, they have dyed eggs. The whole process takes very little time and creates a lot of waste. Next year, I will get some natural food coloring and we will do it our own way.

In some knitting news, I have finished the baby present that I have been diligently procrastinating (details to come). I also have completed the thrid Christmas stocking out of the foursome. I am waiting on the fourth to felt it so that I conserve some water.

Tomorrow, Nonna, the kids and I are headed into the city to go to the children's museum. Wish us luck.

Back to Basics

I have been doing all of this reading of crafty blogs lately that has inspired me. I am not sure why I have not done many crafts with Norah (and Harvey) but I haven't. I have been stuck doing a few things--reading, going to parks, visiting friends, etc.. Yesterday morning I got out some old magazines, markers, crayons and stamps and we had some fun in the kitchen. Norah drew Dr. Yerovi and I made a collage featuring Brian a gay fashion designer and myself as a rather homely blond.

We also spent some time at the library (you can't take pictures there!!??!). There were just so many books that they both wanted to read and so little time before a meltdown. While we were there, I picked up a copy of Rahima Baldwin's You are Your Child' First Teacherr. I am pretty interested in the Waldorf model of education, but I don't know enough about it to consider sending either Norah or Harvey to a Waldorf School. This book, while focused on the early years, should give me a better idea of what they are about.




We spent some time outdoors this afternoon after the kids woke. I finally planted those paper whites that have been sitting in a bag on our window sill for the past few months. The likelihood that they will actually bloom is not in our favor but it was a nice afternoon activity after all.

Summer

Please pleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeease please come fast. I want to go for walks. I want to swing Norah and Harvey in the park. I want to let them roll around in the grass. The tulips will be here soon in Montclair and I bet the bluebonnets are almost out in Texas. No wait, maybe that is May. Anyways, more whining... I want, I want, I want to wear tank tops and 80's cut-off jeans, I want to listen to Janis Joplin, I want to make rocket popsicle thingies. No more mittens, no more.

I think I might be turning into Martha Stewart...

and I am VERY very scared.



Today I made blondies. I have never made these before but YUM, yum, YUM. Instead of pure chocolate for brownies, you add walnuts and chocolate chips, some flour sugar and vanilla, bake them for 45 minutes and out comes this hybrid chocolate chip cookie/ brownie concoction that is the yummiest.



I made them with Norah this morning while Harvey was sleeping. She whisked the batter for me and them licked the spoon.

Harvey woke up in time to enjoy them after lunch. He loved them. After finishing one, he grunted and pointed to another and another. This is fast becoming a very successful form of communicating for him--pointing and whining until he gets the object he desires.

Moving on, today Norah found my knitting--the picot edging on a dress I am making for her. She grabbed it and holding onto the wire of the circular needles, she said, "This is a dinosaur!" and, after looking for only a moment, I realized that it did rather look like a dinosaur. Then, she held the string above her head and said it was an umbrella. Wow. WOW. wow. Brian swears that their imaginations would flourish if we took away their toys and I do wonder about this. I really wonder.

Back In The Saddle

I no longer have the excuse that Norah and Harvey are sick so I can not cloth diaper. Yes, we are back on the cloth diaper train as of today. In fact, I have decided to try gdiapers for going out as it is really hard for me to use cloth when we are outside of the house. gdiapers biodegrade and are flushable. The wet diapers can even go into your compost pile. As we will likely be leaving the house soon and it takes 50 days for them to break-down, I will probably not compost them but I will look forward to doing that in our new abode. I have tried all kinds of cloth diaper combinations-prefolds, fitteds, and all-in-ones. I have come to terms with the fact that I am a lazy cloth diaperer, therefor the all-in-ones are for me. I just ordered three more Bum Genius All-in-Ones from 1800diapers today. So here we go again. I am hitting my second stride.

Bye Bye Bottles

Today I packed up the eight glass bottles (and all of their accoutrements) and made room for tea in our bottle cabinet. It might sound weird but it was pretty hard for me to do it. Bottles have been such a fundamental part of my life for the past two years. I mean, once Norah was finished with hers, I was two months away from delivering Harvey. They didn't come back out again immediately but they didn't get much of a break either. These bottles are going away for a good, long time. No more babies in our house for a couple years. Sad and relieving but true.

I made another attempt at soaking black beans today and was mildly successful. My kids have really put me between a rock and a hard place here as neither are heating very well. When Norah does eat, she eats beans. However, Harvey wants nothing to do with them. Ahhhh.

Baby Loves Disco

We went today with our friends from Montclair. Into the great big ol' New York City with our two babies. Harvey started with the"'s'that"s (What's that?) as soon as we got through the Lincoln Tunnel and he did not stop until we reached the disco. We discovered that he has a newly developed fear of tunnels--the crying started at the started of the Lincoln and eneded when we emerged into NYC. Funny because Norah had this same fear at his age and then grew out of it. He probably will too. When we first got there, Norah was a little scared and hung close to both of us but as she got more comfortable she began to LOVE it. She grabbed flowing scarves and danced around, hugged one man that she thought was her dad, roamed freely about the joint with absolutely no concern as to where her parents were (much to our consternation). Harvey also enjoyed his time there, but he wanted to crawl on what was a very very dirty floor. We left at closing time and headed to Katz's with another couple. I got a hot open-faced turkey sandwich. Yum! Norah crawled around on the floor with Ayden and get very very dirty, made friends with two waitresses, and generally enjoyed herself. Baths and to bed when we got home with no cooking and cleaning up for Mama. An all around very good day.

A New Hobby

I think I want to learn to sew.

This means I need...
a sewing machine
some sewing lessons
a place to put a sewing machine

I have not even mastered knitting yet and here I am wanting to sew. AND I want to figure out how to make this blog beautiful. I am going to the library tomorrow to check out some books on blogging. I will get there, I will.

Crying Snowmen

Before leaving for Portland, we got a heavy, heavy snowfall here in New Jersey--so heavy in fact that my mom and aunt's flight was cancelled. Sad as we were, we tried to take advantage of the sparkling white fluff gracing our lawn--and covering up our rather disgusting lawn (with the pee stains from Stormy and all). Norah and Brian made her first snowman and what a beautiful snowman he was. He has wilted down to a couple of sticks in our lawn right now. Maybe she will dream of where snowmen go when the snow is gone.

Portland, Oregon

wow.

What a truly amazing city. Brian and I arrived last Monday and stayed for a week, looking at houses, discovering the city, discovering the state, talking with residents of Portland, and generally enjoying our time together. Although I must say, 7 days was entirely too long to spend away from Norah and Harvey. And I think my mom would agree. Harvey had a hard time the first four days and Norah had a hard time the last three so, essentially, my mom had a hard time the entire seven days.

I have not spent a great deal of time in the kitchen lately as I have been preparing to go out of town or going out of town. We ate at some fantastic restaurants in Portland. The Tin Shed is in the Alberta district. We stumbled upon this one with Brodie and Marla on their first night there. The menu is seasonal and rotating and simply delicious. The Farm is more upscale and not necessarily better but also delicious. We had a civilized dinner there with wine, roasted hazelnuts for appetizers, and pastas for dinner.

Knitting wise, I finished my mystery socks. I finished Brian's stocking. I have begun finishing Shack's cardigan and I have started Norah's sundress. I LOVE love LOVE Blue Sky Alpaca's cotton. Love it. Pictures of all of these to follow.