like mother, like daughter...

My mom tells me that for about the first 2 years of my life, my hair was soft, smooth, and free of tangles. Then one day, seemingly overnight, I woke up with a rat's nest, and the rest is history. Even now, it still tangles into wicked knots and I don't love letting anyone other than myself brush it.

I hadn't thought about that story in a long time. Until last week, that is.

Emerson's hair has always been quite easy to manage. While it's fine and thin like mine, she has some waviness from Jeff's side. I hoped that was enough to prevent the epic tangles that I grew up with. No such luck.

She woke up one day last week with big tangles. Odd, but manageable. But then the next day and the next after that, the tangles have gotten worse and worse. And not surprisingly, I'm now having to wrestle her to do her hair in the morning. Joy.

Sorry, kiddo. Add it to the list to gripe to the shrink about when you're older.

this made me laugh...

This morning, as Emerson and I were putting clothes into the dryer, she grabbed a bra and said "Those are boobs!"

I'm still giggling about that. Guess you know where my sense of humor is today...

daily devotional

I've been reading a daily devotional book every night, and wanted to share something from last week. The September 23rd entry was about reaping what you sow, and the author closed with this quote:

"When the apostles 'were filled with the holy spirit' (Acts 2:4), they did not lease the Upper Room and stay there to hold holiness meetings. They went everywhere, preaching the gospel." -Will Huff

I LOVE that. Get off your butt and do something. I'm going to work on that~

would you like some cheese with that whine?

This is a question that has I've been pondering ad nauseum lately. So I'll flip it to you~ Why do children whine?

I have become aware during the last year or so that I essentially have a myna bird living in my house in the form of my darling Emerson. I've seen her pick up both cute and annoying habits and sayings of both Jeff and myself. But I can assure you that we don't whine. Sure, we may forget to say please with every inquiry, but we certainly don't whine to each other.

She doesn't go to daycare or preschool, so she's not getting it there. Sure, we play in public areas and of course, we encounter other whining kids from time to time, but is that enough for her to contract this nasty habit? If so, score another point for raising the kid in a bubble.

Just as a side note, when the whining gets unbearable {usually around lunchtime}, Emerson takes "a break" in her room. This is different from a timeout, and I remind her of that as we walk to her room. I sit her in the comfy rocking chair, give her a book or a stuffed animal, leave the door open, and I tell her that she is free to come out as soon as she feels under control. She holds the power, and there is no time requirement. It's just a chance to reload and try again. And so far, it's worked. My daily parenting mantra is "Love is patient. Love is kind." I feel that this "break" strategy works to that end.

Project 365 pics

Hi all~

Here are a few of our latest Project 365 pictures for your viewing enjoyment.

One afternoon, as I glanced through the mail, Emerson happily covered herself and me in smiley face stickers. It was pure bliss for her, and I was glad that the camera was within my grasp.

Emerson has a new kitchen, and she literally spends hours in there whipping up haute cuisine for us.

As I mentioned in my last blog, I made a delicious ham and bean soup last weekend. It was my first time cooking with ham hocks. Not my favorite part of the pig, but the soup was uber- yummy!

As long as the sun is shining, we spend part of our day outside "doing chalk." Emerson really doesn't do much drawing, but she sure loves holding the chalk and commanding that I draw various difficult items.

This picture is significant in that it is the very first picture that Emerson has ever taken. Somehow, she got both her Papa and her arm in the shot.

Make it a great week~

6 days

I know, I know. It's been 6 days since I last blogged. But it's been a busy, week, ok? I have finally gotten my energy back and am spending Emerson's naptimes actually DOING stuff. Here's what I've been up to this week~

I washed my car, cleaned out my closet, dug out all the maternity clothes (still not wearing the pants, thankyouverymuch, but I like the length of the tops so I do wear those), started a new business venture (more about that in a different post), tutored, grocery shopped, ran 7 miles (that's actually not a very good effort for me, but I missed a day), comforted a sick kiddo, had an OB appointment, got a flu shot, did 5 loads of laundry, made a huge pot of US Senate Bean Soup, read about 100 stories, ate countless plates of pretend food cooked by my personal chef Emerson, watched the Hawkeyes beat Arizona, started a Bible study on the book of Ester (it's a fascinating and short read. You should check it out.), baked brownies and cookies (I think I'm nesting early!), got a manicure, went to the pool, played at the park, drew on the driveway, and generally ran around like a crazy girl.

There you have it. The week in a nutshell.

I PROMISE to post some Project 365 pictures later this week.
Make it a good week~

excited for Halloween!

During my days as a classroom teacher, one day filled my heart with dread like no other: Halloween. Not because of the raucous behavior and lack of interest in learning. Rather, it was the elaborate costumes worn by some of the kiddos, lovingly crafted by the expert hands of their mothers. On more than one occasion, I announced to anyone who would listen that I was most certainly not ready to become a mom because there was no way I could fashion a ballerina/tootsie roll/astronaut/insert-fancy-costume-here costume for my child, no matter how much time I was given.

During the last 2 years, I've gotten away easy. Emerson was only a few months old in 2007, and I bought a pair of bunny jammies and put some ears on her. And last year, she wore an Iowa Hawkeye cheerleader costume that was a gift from a cousin. That brings me to Halloween of 2009. Being that Herself is 2, she's not given to making long-term decisions, so I knew better than to consult her about her choice of costume. And I know that I want something very easy to fashion. Hmmm...what is she in to these days? And then, like a shot, it came to me. Candy. She LOVES M&M's, especially the blue ones. (Do you remember her birthday cupcakes?!!?) So, I'm going to make her an M&M costume for Halloween.

How hard can it be, right?

Stay tuned...