Monthly Archives: March 2010

Aaaah, toddlers. “Eighteen months to kindergarten is my favorite age,” I’ve always said.  My dear little girl Ellie Graye is proving that to me over and over and over.

There really is a reason why I never wanted to be a baby nurse, or care for kids who were teens or pre-teens.  I chose to be a “toddler nanny” because they’re just so damn fun. Thinking back to all the newly emerging personalities that I was lucky enough to nurture, I have hundreds of heart-warming stories, hysterical anecdotes, and amazing insights.  As each little face flashes through my memory, I chuckle at their incredible vibrancy more than I squirm at any difficult behavior.

So many people have said to me, “Ugh. The terrible twos,” and to that I say, “Start early.”  I really do believe that the “terrible twos” don’t have to be so terrible.  I’m not saying that I know it all, by any stretch of the imagination.  But I do know that I have lots of things that I found worked with any child, no matter what their personality.  “Consistency” is a word that we throw around a lot, and while consistency really is key, I also believe that respect and trust are equally important.  The child should respect and trust the adult, but the adult needs to do the same for the child.  Trust that your child will learn things on their own. Respect that they’ll have their own opinions.  Young babies and toddlers understand and perceive so much more than I think most people give them credit for – and much of their frustration is based on the lack of help they’re given to express that.

I know that the children that I helped rear in the past were not perfect. I know that they threw fits at inopportune times. I know that they had challenges sleeping through the night, eating well, and minding their manners.  BUT, I also know that they were respectful, followed directions, and were some of the happiest toddlers ever to grace the face of the earth.  I’m so grateful that I had so many “practice” toddlers, because I learned so much from their parents, my collegues, and from the children themselves.  My goal is to apply all this to my own daughter!

I guess what I’m trying to say is that I feel confident. I feel confident in dealing with the fits, with the questions, with the whining, with the constant need for interaction, with the frustration over the inability to communicate – and I LOVE it.  Her joy of learning how to use a rolling pin, her excitement of discovering how to roll the car window down, her thrill in getting a sticker at the grocery store: these are the things that make toddlerhood just so incredibly amazing to experience.  God, I love this girl!

Ok. Enough of the preaching (though I do have a list going of parenting pet-peeves that one day I just might post).

It was another rainy day today, so there wasn’t much work that we could do in the garden, though we did make a few trellises for the peas, pole beans, and started work on the cucumber trellis.  I love re-purposing things, and remembered that I had this fireplace screen sitting outside unused, and it is just PERFECT for the dwarf peas, plus it’s decorative!

Victor headed out into the bog and cut several of these branches from a downed tree to build the structures for the green beans.  We’ll add a few more on the sides, and voila a gorgeous trellis that was cheap, resourceful and eco-friendly!

Even in the rain, the flower garden is beautiful.  We are so incredibly lucky to have all this!

The highlight of the day was spending several hours of my day searching all over the house, all over the car, all over the garden, all over the barn, all over the pastures for my missing phone.  It wasn’t in the greenhouse, it wasn’t in the basement; it wasn’t in the tack room; it wasn’t in the manure pile (re-read that: it wasn’t in the MANURE PILE. That means I LOOKED there); it wasn’t in the trash; it wasn’t in the shop.

I called Phyllis who handles all the phones for the company and asked her to please order me a new one.  I figured that I had dropped it in the stalls when I was cleaning and it was gone forever.  And then…..it rang.  Apparently, Ellie Graye had decided to make a “call” (as she says) and had hidden it from mommy.  At least I now know everything about my horses’ poop, up close and personal!

Chicken Shawarma was on the menu for dinner tonight. I have craved it since I made it last week, and it’s such a simple recipe it’s a perfect meal for just me.  Ellie Graye joined in on the process, as did Daddy (via the webcam)!

Ellie and I ended our day lounging in her room, reciting the entire swim class routine (including practicing our breast stroke and 4-beat freestyle), playing in baskets, and giggling until we snorted.  Aaaah. There really is nothing like the companionship of a special toddler….

P.S. I miss Kino oodles on nights like tonight.

Today I napped.  I rarely, rarely, rarely take the time to sit down, let alone nap…but Jeffrey and I both have scratchy throats, and I hardly slept last night (the storm last night was so strong it woke the whole family, including the dogs.  Ellie Graye couldn’t settle back to sleep, so I spent a good portion of my night comforting her while the wind howled and the rain pounded her window).

It was during those midnight hours that I realized that I’m addicted to not only DPF, cooking, gardening, and my horses, but I’m addicted to this blog.  As I lay holding my daughter, listening to the wind whip through the trees, all I could think about were the seedlings that I had planted earlier in the day.  “Had I hardened them off enough?” “Would their delicate leaves be able to withstand the force of the wind?” “Would the rain wash away their roots?”  I even formulated a plan to head to the garden once EG was asleep to go protect them from the evil forces of nature.  I changed my mind once she was finally quiet in her crib, and I was half asleep myself!

What’s that got to do with the blog?  Well, the entire time I was thinking about braving the wind, rain and cold to go protect my emerging seedlings, there was a voice writing a narration of the story…see, I’m not sure anyone else in the world thinks like me, but when I talk or think, I SEE the words.  They tick across the front of my head like a  programmable scrolling word sign – the ones with the red letters that you see in windows of random jewelry stores and gas stations. When the words whiz by too fast or when I accidentally spell words incorrectly, I stutter. Yeah. I know. I’m weird.  But that’s how I think.

What’s cool, though is that the words come in various colors.  Usually having to do with the emotion behind the words I’m saying, but other times they just choose themselves. Different people are assigned different fonts, speeds, and formats – but they’re always visible in my head. When I know a friend really well, their identifying font is their penmanship.  So how’s that for random?  Aaah, the things I decide to reveal while listening to the rain!

Lorena and Victor are back from LA, and brought with them a gift from an old friend of mine, Frannie.  Frannie was Madonna’s LA housekeeper the entire time I lived with M, and even a year or so after, I think.  After leaving the Material Girl, she went to work for Gwen Stefani.  She’s an amazing housekeeper who works her butt off, and always wears a smile…even in the middle of chaos!  I haven’t seen her in years, but the household staff from that particular time has a special bond, I think.  Anyway, she had Lorena bring me a bottle of Gwen’s fragrance, and while I’m not a big perfume wearer, I actually really like it!  It’s girly, but has a tough edge to it.  Thanks, Francisca!

Other than contemplating writing about scrolling word signs, today was pretty uneventful.  We had swimming, as usual (though the pool was a little cold, and is closed tomorrow since it turns out the heater broke), and then we just hung out at the house.  Ellie was thrilled that Yovani didn’t go to school today, and followed him around like a puppy dog saying, “MANNNNNY! Alla (over there!).”  She LOVES him so much!

The day ended with the usual Monday drive to the airport;  I can’t wait until those trips are less frequent.  It’ll be lovely to have my husband around more often than not.  One day soon, I hope.

Once I got home, I got Ellie down and then gave my plants some attention.  I had to move them out of the laundry room since Lorena is back and needed the use of the counters and the washer and dryer.  All my plants have now returned to a folding table in the dining room! Aaaaaaaaah, the smell of soil! Love it.