Wednesday, November 29, 2006

Library Time

Before I was a mommy, I was a nanny. I was always so into educational activities. With most of the families I worked with, I could do whatever I wanted with the kids. I wasn't just a caregiver, I was the activities coordinator, with petty cash. I planned play dates, we had regular trips to the zoo and chidren's museum, we attended "mommy" and me classes, we took swimming classes, I worked in classrooms of the older kids.

Now that I'm a mom, I'm not as into that stuff, and sometimes I feel bad about that. Is my kid going to miss out on something? So lately, I've been trying to get us doing more activities outside the house. So far I'm failing miserably. LOL The latest thing we tried was the library story time. I had high hopes but low expectations. It was a toddler story time for kids 0-2, which is perfect for us.

First mistake was not letting the kid run a few miles before we got there. She was so full of energy, she would not hold still. I'm sure part of that was that it was a new place.

Second mistake was arriving early. In my typical anal style, we were 15 minutes early. I hate going to new places and being late. So, the kid had already reached her attention span when it was time to sit down and listen to stories.

I was impressed with the turnout, there were probably 20 or more caregivers, mostly moms, a few grandmas and at least one dad. One woman appeared to have triplets! The librarian doing story time was great. She knew and understood toddlers, said she would do mostly songs, rhyming games and fingerplays, with a few books thrown in the mix. Amelia loved all the other kids, but she would not stay with me. There was a big stage behind the librarian, and a big sign that, of course, said, "Please stay off the stage."

Amelia took that as an invitation. SHe listened for about 15 minutes, then the pull of the stage just couldn't stop her any longer. After the 3rd time, and a few screams from the kiddo, we left. I didn't feel so bad since there were two other moms leaving with their kids because they also wouldn't stay off the stage.

We left the library and went to the park. She ran and played and made some new friends. It's so cute to see little kids who don't speak the same language communicate. There were two women at the park with a group of kids, I think they did day care. Anyway, there were 3 little girls who only spoke Spanish, they were adorable. Amelia kept talking to them, and they talked back. They communicated just fine, even though they were not speaking the same language.

I think next week we'll try the park first to wear here out, then head to the library.

Monday, November 27, 2006

Are you kidding me???

DENVER - A homeowners association in southwestern Colorado has threatened to fine a resident $25 a day until she removes a Christmas wreath with a peace sign that some say is an anti-Iraq war protest or a symbol of Satan.



Some residents who have complained have children serving in Iraq, said Bob Kearns, president of the Loma Linda Homeowners Association in Pagosa Springs. He said some residents have also believed it was a symbol of Satan. Three or four residents complained, he said.

"Somebody could put up signs that say drop bombs on Iraq. If you let one go up you have to let them all go up," he said in a telephone interview Sunday.

Lisa Jensen said she wasn't thinking of the war when she hung the wreath. She said, "Peace is way bigger than not being at war. This is a spiritual thing."

Jensen, a past association president, calculates the fines will cost her about $1,000, and doubts they will be able to make her pay. But she said she's not going to take it down until after Christmas.

"Now that it has come to this I feel I can't get bullied," she said. "What if they don't like my Santa Claus."

The association in this 200-home subdivision 270 miles southwest of Denver has sent a letter to her saying that residents were offended by the sign and the board "will not allow signs, flags etc. that can be considered divisive."

The subdivision's rules say no signs, billboards or advertising are permitted without the consent of the architectural control committee.

Kearns ordered the committee to require Jensen to remove the wreath, but members refused after concluding that it was merely a seasonal symbol that didn't say anything. Kearns fired all five committee members.




**Remind me not to visit Colorado any time soon.

Saturday, November 25, 2006

Christmas is coming...

Thanksgiving is over,so I can officially begin to celebrate Christmas right? Maybe it's because I have little kid, but I am so into all these holidays this year. Thanksgiving was good, I didn't take pictures... sorry! We had lots of food ( still have lots of food thanks to the 17 lb pound turkey Jeff bought! lol)

I have decided I'm going to get one of the organic free range turkeys next year. I wish I'd thought to get one this year. Oh well.

My house is totally decorated for Christmas now. Amelia is having a ball with the tree. She wants to take everything off the tree. The only things within her reach now are candy canes.

Here she is with a hand full of candy canes...

Tuesday, November 14, 2006

Lillian Faith



Isn't she just the cutest little thing?

It's raining...

well actually it's really just barely sprinkling, but I don't care. There is water falling from the sky. Yes I'm wierd, but I love the rain. I didn't realize how much until I moved somewhere that went 10 months without rain every year! lol

I love the fresh smell that happens after it rains. And the sound of rain coming down. Now if only Californians could learn to drive in the rain, so I wouldn't have to be afraid to go out on the roads today. :-)

Monday, November 13, 2006

I should know better..

than to take a nap. That what happened yesterday. I took a 3 hour long nap in the afternoon and couldn't sleep last night. If you noticed the time stamp on the last post, it was something crazy like 11:30. I'm usually in bed by 930, but after my marathon nap yesterday, I couldn't sleep. I stayed up until after 1AM playing on the computer and then I still laid in bed unable to sleep for a while longer.

But hey at least I actually posted more than one paragraph, maybe I should blog in the middle of the night more often!

Sunday, November 12, 2006

Home

Home is an interesting thing. They say home is where your heart is. As a child, it's where you live, where your family is. As an adult it changes. When I was 21 I changed where home was for me. I quit my job as a preschool teacher and made the move from Astoria Oregon ( population less than 10,000) and moved to San Jose which had a population of over 900,000. It was a huge change. I had a lot of reasons for leaving which I won't get into now, but it was time for a change. Time to step out of the familiar small town life where I knew just about everyone, and go find out who I was. I left behind my family and everyone I knew. I had a job and a place to live and that was it.

I have never regretted the decision. However, I do sometimes miss the small town life. I miss the familiar. I miss having my family close by. I miss open space. I miss the trees and the rain. I miss the slower pace. When I left, I had no intention of staying in california. I was just going off to have my own adventures and see what life had to offer. I always planned to go home before I was ready to be a "real" grown up. I assumed I'd be back home before I got married and had children. I pictured myself raising my kids in the same small town environment I was raised in.

Then I met Jeff. We got married. He was transferred even further South, to Orange County. Then we had Amelia. It was hard. I didn't have any family around to help out and just be supportive. I didn't want to raise my kid in the middle of Suburbia. I tried so hard to convince Jeff to move to the NW. I just so badly wanted something familiar. I'm glad he didn't give in, I have grown to like living in the OC. I have a great group of friends, we live in a nice little place and Jeff has a good job. This is my home now. But, it doesn't mean the other places can't be home too. I will always feel like the peninsula and Astoria are home as well.

Who knows maybe someday my daughter will go off to have her own adventures, and change her perspective on home.

Thursday, November 09, 2006

My accent?

This is pretty accurate, since I have only lived up and down the west coast.

What American accent do you have?
Your Result: The West

Your accent is the lowest common denominator of American speech. Unless you're a SoCal surfer, no one thinks you have an accent. And really, you may not even be from the West at all, you could easily be from Florida or one of those big Southern cities like Dallas or Atlanta.

The Midland
North Central
Boston
The South
The Inland North
Philadelphia
The Northeast
What American accent do you have?
Take More Quizzes

Sunday, November 05, 2006

I'm done!

I am done with all of my Christmas shopping! I have a couple of things I ordered online that haven't shipped yet, but everything else is done. It's the beginning of November! yay me!

My kid is seriously getting spoiled this christmas. She is getting doll stuff, dress up stuff, and a bunch of toys. I can't wait to see her little face on Christmas morning. The only bad part of shopping ahead of time, is now I have to wait so long. LOL