"Excuse me?"

Kids say the darnedest things. Oh so true. And you don't realize how much of it comes out of your own mouth until you hear it regurgitated from those innocent little lips. Now in all fairness, we have been very good about watching our p's and q's around our little fella because it appears he has very keen ears and a memory like an elephant!

Allow me to elaborate. Yesterday evening, Zeke and I were going through our usual bedtime routine. We had just completed reading a couple of stories when he decided to share a word with me that sounded of Spanish origin. Being a Dora the Explorer fan (Zeke, not myself), I figured he'd picked up a word from one of the shows and was somehow mispronouncing it. I asked him what it meant, and he said it didn't mean anything.

"Why would you say a word that doesn't mean anything?" I asked.

Zeke looked at me for a second and without missing a beat, "Just to make you ask 'Why?'" he said in a very matter-of-fact tone.

I opened my mouth to say something in protest but stopped. He jumped down from my lap and started rummaging through his book box, and I found myself smiling. A little. I do recall using that same line just a day or two before, and I know my husband uses it all the time when he finds himself bombarded with near impossible "Why?" questions in rapid succession from our very inquisitive preschooler. (If your kids are old enough to talk in good sentences, you know exactly what I'm talking about.)

He said something else to me yesterday that almost caused me to laugh out loud, but I bit my tongue. It was right before leaving the dinner table, and to be entirely honest, I don't recall the details of the conversation. All I can remember was hearing my once quiet, babbling little baby say, "Look, Mommy, this is what's going to happen," right before he explained in what sequence we needed to get things done once we left the table.

I look at Gabe and know this non-argumentative and innocent little baby isn't going to stay that way either. Pretty soon he's going to be telling us how things should be and how we--his aging parents who don't know any better--need to do things. Can we see ourselves in their shoes once upon a time with our own parents? Perhaps even now?

(Can I get an "Amen"?)

I didn't get onto Zeke about saying what he did last night. That was actually kinda funny, though I'd never tell him that, of course. And who knows what the next thing will be out of that kid's mouth?

I certainly don't!

Mommy and Me

I got to spend some much-needed one-on-one time with Zeke yesterday. My parents had offered to keep the baby for a couple of nights, and since DH was headed to Indiana for a couple of days, it was just going to be the two of us.

I must admit I tend to spoil him a little at times like these, especially now that his little brother needs so much more attention. So after picking him up from the daycare, we stopped by McDonald's for dinner and some time in the play place. While I sipped my caramel iced coffee (I hadn't yet digested my lunch from Pete's Sushi and Thai Restaurant for my mum's birthday) and worked the crossword puzzle from The City Paper, Zeke crawled and climbed and ran around with his newly made friends. He had a great time--we both did--and he was so tired afterwards that it only took a couple of minutes to fall asleep after bedtime stories and lights out!

The key here is energy expenditure. Keep that in mind, folks!

The plan for today is a good, home-cooked meal (I think lasagna is on the menu), a movie rental (I agreed to stop and pick up Scooby Doo from the Red Box today), and popcorn in the living room. We may even invite some of his stuffed animals to join us for the group discount. *grin*

I think we both needed a break and time to reconnect. Besides, they're only young once. Better enjoy it while you can!

What's For Dinner?

I deal with this question on a daily basis now. Long gone are the days when Darling Hubby was home before me on week nights and had supper on the table by the time I got home from work. (Seriously, I had to be the luckiest woman alive!) Now that he's on the road, the task falls into my lap. I don't mind cooking; it's figuring out what to cook that drives me bonkers!

I used to plan meals for the entire week and shop accordingly. I really should get back to doing that, and one of these days I will, by God. But in the mean time, I'm left wandering through the kitchen, trying to decide what I feel like fixing that my not-so-picky-but-rather-opinionated little boy will eat.

By some twist of fate, I came up with this concoction that seemed to fit the bill. It has protein, starch, and a serving or two of vegetables in each bowl, and I believe it's relatively inexpensive to make. Since I'm in a generous mood, here's how to make it:


Ingredients

• 1 box mac 'n' cheese
• 1/4 cup margarine/butter
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 pound ground beef
• 1 medium onion, chopped
  
• 1 can petite diced tomatoes
• 1 tbsp salt-free garlic herb seasoning blend
• several dashes Worcestershire sauce
• 2-3 cups fresh spinach leaves, rough chopped
• salt and pepper to taste

Method

1. In a large pot, prepare mac 'n' cheese according to package directions (add margarine/butter and milk; amounts may vary depending on preparation instructions).
   
2. In a separate skillet, brown ground beef together with onion; drain well. Add to mac 'n' cheese.
3. Stir in tomatoes, seasoning blend, and Worcestershire sauce, and season to taste.
4. Stir in spinach and heat just until leaves start to wilt.

Makes 4-6 servings.


If you're like us, you like your mac 'n' cheese really cheesy, so I added 3 slices of American cheese (I didn't have any Velveeta on hand, but you could use that, too). Zeke cleaned his plate, so I'm guessing that's a sign he liked it. It's sort of like fixing Hamburger Helper, only you take it up a notch with the extra veggies and seasonings.

I think this recipe's a keeper. *wink*

A Night Off

A couple of nights ago, I had the rare pleasure of a night at home ENTIRELY by myself. The hubby was on the road to California, and my parents were keeping the kids. BLISS! While I didn't get to enjoy champagne and a bubble bath like the picture here suggests, I did get a lot of work done.

My intention for the evening was to relax, but as is my nature, I ended up finding several things that needed to be done around the house. I know, I know, but I really needed time to get this stuff done without a preschooler wanting help with his crayon pictures or a baby needing to be fed or diapered. I could concentrate on the tasks at hand. I still found myself pausing every now and then to see if I could hear the baby crying (habit, I know), and that night after about six hours of sleep, my body told itself to wake up and stay up. Huh! So much for getting a full eight hours of kip! The idea is so foreign to me now, it seems I've lost the ability to actually do it!

I have to say that taking time for yourself is really important, especially if you're a mother. No matter if you're new to the game or are a veteran parent of grown kids, a time out really gives you a chance to recharge your batteries and center your being. True, I was busy getting things done around the house, but I still felt somewhat rested from the time off. I was even excited to see the kids the next day and found I had a lot more patience to deal with Zeke constantly pushing the envelope, as most preschoolers tend to do.

So, mothers, find someone to take the kids for a couple of hours, light a scented candle, sit back with a beverage of your choice, and put your feet up. I don't recommend watching TV during your down time, but maybe pick up that book you've been meaning to read or call a friend you haven't talked to in a while. It's amazing what a little time to yourself will do!

Good Eats

I stopped by the local farmers market a couple of days ago. It was much smaller than the one I used to go to, but you get a sense of being healthy just by showing up to one of these things. Most of the produce for sale at this point consisted of the usual squash, tomatoes, green beans, spuds (or "taters" as they are known in these parts), peppers, and various home-canned goods. I'm determined to teach my kids a bit about where their food comes from, as well as get them on board with smart food choices now as opposed to later. When Zeke was about 2, if anyone asked him where the chicken on his plate came from, he'd say, "From the store." Now he will explain that the chicken once walked around on a farm and can give you a couple of ways to effectively decapitate said chicken before prepping it for use in the kitchen. That was actually more detail than I was going for, but at least he gets the idea.

This particular trip to the farmers market yielded some 3-1/2 pounds or so of fresh green beans. I must have forgotten about the part that involved washing and snapping the little buggers, which is what I spent a good bit of time working on this evening. I felt good, however, when spooning some of those green beans onto Zeke's dinner plate tonight and watching him eat every bit of it with little protest. He's one of the few preschoolers I know (granted I don't know many) who actually enjoys eating vegetables and salads. Really it comes down to how we the parents approach healthy eating and by setting good examples for ourselves.

I'm sure I'll be back by that farmers market a few more times this summer. I'm patiently awaiting okra season and all the wonderful fruits of the summer months. In the mean time, we will have to settle for some of the veggie selections in our grocery store's freezer department. Looks like we'll have to make a point about planting our garden again next year, something we let slip by this year. We did well with our bread and butter pickled zucchini and squash last year, but this time I'd like to try to make chow chow or red pepper jelly. Perhaps I may even get the kiddos involved!

Down Time is for Wimps!

I decided to take the kids to the park today. While Zeke thought he was in for a treat for being a good boy this morning, my ulterior motive was to ensure a timely nap after lunch. Jeremy was getting ready to go back on the road for work this morning, and I was in need of some down time while the kids napped. Sneaky, I know. So we piled into the mommy wagon and headed off.

The weather was great, though we still needed to slather on the sun screen. Gabe was strapped to me in a carrier, while Zeke was running around the wooden fort burning off all that extra preschool energy we all seem to envy. After about an hour, it was time to go.

Stopping by McDonald's for a grilled chicken snack wrap for Zeke (I abstained even with a growling stomach, which I was very proud of by the way), we then headed home. Zeke nodded off and Gabe woke up screaming for food. Figures. When we finally made it home, I put Zeke in bed and tended to the little one.

After a quick lunch and a brief stint in front of the TV, Zeke fell out of bed and started crying. Thus marked the end of my down time. *sigh* Of course, Zeke didn't want to go back to sleep, so that was that. It wasn't so bad though; we ended up playing Snap with a deck of cards and built all kinds of things with dominoes to knock over. It was fun!

It's now time to get supper on the table, and Gabe sounds like he's about to test just how much lung capacity he can utilize in a single scream for food. Tomorrow is a school day, and Zeke needs to be in bed at a halfway decent hour, and I have dishes and laundry to muddle through before I can call it a day. Where does the time go?

And yes, I guess down time must be for wimps!

Bedtime Battle

Zeke and I have our own little bedtime ritual. After brushing teeth and changing clothes, I will read him a couple of books either from his collection or from the ones I pick up for him at the local library. Then it's usually lights out, and I will sit with him for a few minutes until he starts to nod off.

Enter baby brother, and things change BIG time!

On the evenings when Gabe decides he just wants to eat and go right to sleep, it's not so bad. Sometimes, however, he wants to be held because now he's wide awake and wants to check out his new pad. Can't say I blame him, considering he's only conscious for about 4 out of 24 hours in a day. Zeke still wants to sit in my lap for his stories, so I'm juggling a 35-pound 3-year-old and a roughly 7-pound baby, along with whichever book I'm supposed to be reading out of and am not allowed to drop anything. Thankfully I have fairly long arms.

Tonight was a bit of a challenge because Zeke decided he wanted something to drink before going to bed. Then he wanted some more, which I indulged him with along with a stern warning about not drinking too much before bedtime, yadda, yadda, yadda. Then Gabe was up and wanting to eat. After dealing with that, Zeke was ready for lights out, but I had to stay with him because he didn't want to be by himself. (The fact that his brother is in the crib means nothing to him at this point because he can't actually see him because of the bumpers.) A couple of minutes of cuddle time later, he wants more to drink. Hmmm! This goes on for almost an hour. After I finally leave the nursery and get most of the dishes loaded in the dishwasher, I hear a whiney voice say, "Mommy, I need you in here!" It turns out Zeke needed a few more minutes of cuddle time.

I'm not a pushover, but by 9 p.m. I'm pretty much ready to drop, and that makes it hard to be a calm and patient parent of a 3-year-old who constantly wants to push the envelope and figure out just how late he thinks he can stay up. (I didn't want to remind him there's a bit more flexibility on weekends; there's no reason to share that information with him just yet.)

Sometimes I forget that this big brother is still just a little guy who occasionally needs his mommy to pick him up and hold him just like the baby in the crib. I think this is going to be a challenge for me because I tend to rely on him being the big brother and not needing me as much as he used to. Of course, that changes when someone else needs my attention and he no long gets me all to himself as he once did. Jeremy--my husband--and I realized this and have been working with Zeke to overcome this even before Gabe was born, but it's much easier said than done. No matter how much time you spend preparing your first child for the arrival of the second, there is always that regression into a much needier state than they really are, and that can be frustrating for any parent!

But when all is said and done, you can only do what you can do. I survived the arrival of my younger brother, and Zeke will be just fine. Besides, he's too darn independent to be otherwise!

Welcome To My Blog!

I've pondered over whether or not to start my own parenting blog for some time now. Being a relatively new parent (and by that I mean my children are both very young), I hadn't considered myself to be any kind of parenting authority. But looking back on the past nearly 4 years, I think I have a thing or two to say that someone in a similar walk in life may find interesting, perhaps even helpful.

The basis for my blog are my two sons, Ezekiel (we call him Zeke) and Gabriel (Gabe, of course). Zeke is a couple of months away from hitting 4 years of age, and Gabe is still fresh off the line--that is to say, he's only 5 weeks old.

There have been times when things have happened that I've thought to myself, Well, that was a lesson learned! or We won't be doing it THAT way again! It's nice to know I'm not the only parent in the world who has these experiences from time to time, and comparing notes can be encouraging to the newbie mom or dad. Parenting, I have found, is a lifetime membership in a special group where only other parents can understand and sympathize with your joys and pains and inner struggles.

So here it is, my musings as a mother of two small boys. By the way, I called it "Mummy Musings" because of my childhood and teen years in England, though Zeke has never actually referred to me as his "mummy." Here in Tennessee, I answer to "mommy," "momma," even "maaww" (note the southern drawl) on occasion.

However you want to say it, it's all good. *smile*