Laughter is the Best Medicine

I remember the first time that Grace let out her first giggle. It was the most beautiful sound I had ever heard. It was soon followed by laughter - not just a giggle, but the full belly laughs that seemed to consume her entire little body. I stand by my statement from that day - the sweetest sound in the entire world is a child's laughter.

I don't think I'll ever get sick of hearing her laugh. It is my daily mission to make her laugh! I chase her around the house, have pillow fights with her and tickle her until she can't stand it anymore. I do it all so that I can hear that sweet sound (and because I know that it is making her happy). :)

Grace has so many "levels of laughter" that I've become accustomed to hearing. She does the "fake laugh" when she knows that I'm trying to make her laugh, she "giggles" over silly things and then she has her big "open-mouthed laugh" when she finds something genuinely funny. She also has what I call the "shoulder shrugging laugh"; it's when she is laughing so hard that her shoulders move up and down uncontrollably. Each one of these laughs brings a smile to my face.

I walked in the house after bootcamp yesterday and could hear laughter coming from the bedroom. It was muffled (which was a clear sign that Grace and Daddy were having a pillow fight and she was throwing herself around the bed and into the blankets, lol). I instantly smiled.

Grace has that effect on me - she is so powerful without even knowing it. When I'm having a bad day, it's my little 16 month old daughter that knows how to cheer me up. Her smile and her laughter are amazing therapy! The other day after a particularly rough day at school, I came home to a smiling little girl. She wrapped her arms around my neck, snuggled in and said "Mommy". The she ran away from me as fast as she could, laughing and waiting for me to chase her. Every one of my worries melted away.

Laughter really is the best medicine. Sometimes I will say funny things to my class, just so that I can get them laughing. I could teach them 100 things in a day, but what they'll remember more is that moment when I made them laugh with my silly joke or crazy dance! I challenge you to laugh more this week. Tickle your child, watch a funny show, break out into a silly dance in the living room....whatever it takes to make you laugh. Trust me, it's good for your health! :)

I have this posted on my classroom wall - love it! :)

I'm Back!

Wow, I suck at blogging! I've been essentially MIA since September. Being a working Mommy is busier than I ever imagined! Blogging just isn't on the priority list these days. However, I've decided that I want to try to get back into it. My posts won't be the same as they used to be, because I no longer have 3 hours to sit and perfect a post, complete with pictures. :) I'll be posting about a variety of things as they come up.

So much has changed with Grace since I last posted. It would be impossible to tell you everything! She is 16 months old now and is the most incredible little girl. She has grown up so much and has such a little personality now. She is running and climbing and talking up a storm. She likes to entertain us with her dancing and singing and she loves reading books. The highlight of my day is seeing that smiling face when I pick her up at the babysitter's house. I continue to be amazed by how much love I have for her. Here is an updated picture!

Last time I posted, I had just accepted a 6 week teaching position in grade 4. Well, things changed quickly and the day before the students started at school, I had an interview for a full time grade 2 position at the same school. I got the job (YAY) and am there for the year (it's just a one year position). I absolutely adore my job and do not want it to end in June. Some of my posts will no doubt be about my job, because it's a big part of my life. Here's a link to my classroom blog if you're interested: Mrs. Roberts' Grade 2's

I am still going to bootcamp and am still LOVING it! :) I don't think it will ever get old! My eating is not as good as it used to be though and I've gained about 5lbs back. Ugh!! I only get to bootcamp 2-3 times/week now, but I'm going to try to start working out after school 1-2 days/week. It's really hard to squeeze it in when I am working, but I know that it can be done. No more excuses! I've also started meal planning and it's making a big difference with my eating. I plan out my suppers on Sunday and then I know what days I'll have leftovers for lunch and I know what I have to thaw out in advance. No more getting home and digging through the cupboards trying to figure out what to make (while eating whatever I can get my hands on, because I'm starving at that point, lol)! February's goal is to drink more water....a hard one to do when you only get one bathroom break a day!

Anyways, I know this is a very boring post, but I hope to have more exciting posts in the future! Thanks for reading and have a great Superbowl Sunday!
Cheryl

An Incredible Year with my Baby Girl!

As you've noticed, my posts have been few and far between this summer. I guess I was just too busy having fun and soaking up every last minute of my maternity leave. Here's the thing...my mat leave is officially over. I start back to work tomorrow (more on that later). The past year has flown by and I have enjoyed every single minute of being home with my sweet little girl! It amazes me that some Moms return to work mere weeks or months after their baby is born. Heck, I've even heard of Moms returning to work days after their baby is born! I feel very blessed to have had the last year with my daughter. Through our days spent together, we have formed a relationship that is stronger than I ever thought possible.

We have snuggled in bed on cold mornings, stayed in our pajamas all day and slept on the couch together in the middle of the afternoon. We have explored together, taking trips to the beach and the park. We have braved Walmart together and have gone on weekly grocery shopping trips. We have exercised together and met many new Mommies and babies. We have spent countless hours playing on the floor. We have put a lot of kilometers on the car and a lot of miles on the stroller. It has been incredible. I wouldn't change it for the world.

I have been offered a 6 week position teaching grade 4. It is far from ideal because it is such a short position, but I'll take it day by day! For now it's guaranteed work for 6 weeks, which is excellent. Tomorrow I will get back into a routine. I will work a full week for the first time since June 2010. The bags are packed, our lunches are made and our clothes are laid out. In the morning, I will drop my sweet baby girl off at the babysitter's and head to work. I know that she's in good hands and I know how amazing it's going to feel to see her at 4:00. Instead of feeling sad about the end of something great, I'm going to be grateful for the time that I had at home with her. Weekends are going to take on a whole new meaning! :) 

I would love to fill this post with pictures of Grace and I over the past year, but I just don't have the time to look them all up right now. I guess I better get used to this. I have a feeling I'm not going to have time for a lot of things when I'm working!! I promise another post soon, even if it's short and without pictures! :)

Happy First Day of School Everyone!!! :)

Grocery Store Etiquette

I think that there should be a course offered in grocery store etiquette. Some people just don't know when they're crossing the line. Before I had Grace, I didn't seem to get annoyed at the grocery store. Of course there was the odd person that left their cart in the middle of the aisle, or moved too slow in front of me, but it wasn't a big deal. I would just take a deep breath and keep on trucking.

Now that I have a child, grocery store trips are totally different. Grace actually loves the grocery store and enjoys squealing at random strangers, throwing the groceries from the cart and chewing on anything she can get her hands on. Most people are sweet, constantly commenting on how adorable my little girl is as they walk past. Grace always responds with a big smile. She is definitely the centre of attention at the grocery store.

First time in the cart at the grocery store!

Then there are the people that cross the line (in my opinion), making comments that they should keep to themselves. They usually direct the comments at Grace, as if saying them to her makes it that much more acceptable. I almost always just smile at them, holding in what I really want to say!

Here is an example of some comments that I have heard over the past 10 months:

Woman to Grace: "Poor girl - you must be cold without a jacket". She then starts rubbing Grace's arms and says "Yep, she's cold."
What I'm thinking "First of all, get your dirty hands off my baby, please and thank you. Second, she's perfectly fine in her t-shirt and would be sweating buckets if I put a jacket on her....but thanks for the advice."

Woman to Me: "She's so tiny for her age."
Me: "Yes, she is quite small."
Woman to Grace: "Mommy needs to feed you some good food and fatten you up!"
What I'm thinking: "What? I'm supposed to feed her? DUH!!! First of all, she eats plenty of good food. The child never stops eating. Second, why would I want to fatten her up when the doctors say that she is a perfectly healthy weight?"

Woman to Grace: "I hope you don't fall out of that cart. You're not strapped in very well."
Me: "Oh don't worry - she's not going to fall out."
What I'm thinking: "Yes, I'm just going to let my child fall out of the cart. Idiot! She is strapped in with the only strap that the cart has!!!"

Creepy Middle-aged Man to Me: "Cute baby and cute Mommy too", followed by creepy smile
I think you know what I was thinking.

Moms, what are some of the inappropriate things that strangers have said to you at the grocery store?

The most recent comment I received was directed at me, not Grace. I was in line at the grocery store and as I was putting my groceries on the belt, the lady behind me started talking to Grace.

This is the conversation that followed:
Lady: She's so sweet. How old is she?
Me: Thank you. She's 10 months.
Lady: Wow, you look great for having a 10 month old baby.
Me: Aww, thank you so much. (At this point I'm thinking that this lady is just being nice, complimenting me).
Lady: After I had my kids, I never could lose the weight. (AWKWARD)
Me: Oh, how many kids do you have?
Lady: Four. I always hated women like you that lost the baby weight so easy. I have a friend just like you. I swear she just farted and the baby weight was gone. (UM....WHAT?????!!!!)
Me: Well, the weight didn't actually come off that easily for me.
Lady: Sorry honey, but I find that hard to believe.
This would be the point where I look to the cashier with a panicked look and she asks me right on cue if I have bags for my groceries. Crisis averted - I will not throw a tantrum at the grocery store today.

Now, I know that this woman probably thought that she was being nice, complimenting me and telling me that I look good. However, I was HIGHLY ANNOYED by her comments. She didn't know me. Who was she to jump to the conclusion that the baby weight had fallen off of me? I worked my ass off to lose that weight. I put in a lot of hours, sweat and sore muscles to get back to where I was pre-baby.

Each week, I continue to be amazed by the random strangers at the grocery store that feel the need to give me parenting advice. By all means, say hi to my baby, tell her she's adorable, make her smile....but don't make inappropriate comments or jump to conclusions.

Routine? What?

As you have probably gathered from my previous posts, Grace has never been much of a sleeper. We would have to fight to get her to sleep and the battle was often longer than the nap itself! She was on no set routine, waking at a different time each day with naps all over the place.

About 2 weeks ago, I noticed that Grace was starting to put herself into somewhat of a schedule. She was waking up at roughly the same time each day (around 7am) and was ready for her naps at around the same time. Even more shocking is that her body seems to know exactly how much sleep she needs now! Her naps are an hour and a half every time...usually right down to the minute!

Grace's afternoon nap is at about 1:00, meaning that she is up at 2:30. She gets tired again around 4:00, but I don't let her have another nap, because it makes bedtime WAY easier. Most nights now, she has her bath around 6:30 and is asleep by 7:00ish. I put her in the crib awake and she puts herself to sleep....most nights (nobody's perfect, right?). Remember how Grace used to wake up 2-4 times each night? She now only wakes up once (usually around 5am) and some nights she sleeps right through. It has been incredible!

Now, I know as well as any other Mom that things can change very quickly. Just when you think that things are good, something changes and your baby starts waking up through the night again. So...I'm going to cherish every night of good sleep and every day of routine! :)

I don't follow a set routine to the minute and things get bumped around a bit depending on our plans, but here is the general routine that Grace now follows! I just have to do this, because it makes me happy to be able to type it...

Grace's Daily Routine:
7:00am - wake up
8:00am - breakfast
9:00am to 10:30am - nap
12:00pm - lunch
1:00pm to 2:30pm - nap
5:00pm - supper
6:30pm - bath, milk and cuddles :)
7:00pm - sleep

Hmm...I wonder how long this will last? :)

The Perfect Mom

Someone told me yesterday that I'm a great Mom and actually asked me if I ever do anything wrong! I chuckled a little bit, because I am far from perfect at this Mom business. Feel free to judge me as you read the following post.

I let my baby watch cartoons. I don't feed her organic food. I even gave her Froot Loops once, just to see her reaction. I use regular lotions and sunscreens on her (not the chemical free stuff). I sometimes wake her from her naps so that I don't have to miss out on fitness classes and playdates. I do whatever it takes to get her to sleep (which usually means the swing for naps and rocking at night). I nurse her in the middle of the night even though I know she's not hungry. I stick her in her jolly jumper when I need to get stuff done. I put headbands on her even though they sometimes leave a mark on her head. I get frustrated with her when she tries to roll off the change table. I tend to read her the shortest books on the bookshelf. I don't clean her high chair everyday, even though it's frequently caked in food after a meal. I don't follow all of the food guidelines and I give her some foods before I'm supposed to. I lose my temper sometimes. I don't run to her when she bumps her head. I say "You're okay" at least 10 times a day. I am lazy in the mornings and sometimes listen to her talk in the monitor, instead of going in to get her. I dress her up like a doll so that I can get cute pictures. I keep her up past her bedtime if I have somewhere that I need to go. I let her chew on the remote and other germ infested objects.

See? I make mistakes. I do things that I shouldn't. You may have cringed reading some of the above things. However, then there are the things that I do right...

I give her a thousand kisses a day. I tell her that I love her all the time even though she doesn't know what I mean. I lay on the floor and play games with her. I cheer for her when she does something new. I sing songs to her. I am constantly snuggling her. I read to her every day. I take hundreds of pictures each month, so that I can re-live every special moment that we shared together. I miss her when I'm away from her. I am so proud of her. I think that she is perfect in every way. I do everything I can to make her laugh. I tear up over the silliest things, like when she lunges at me with a kiss. I would do anything I could to ensure that she never gets hurt. I wish I could shield her from the bad things (and people) in life. I try to be a good role model for her. I teach her new things. I take her outside. I introduce her to new people. I dance with her in my arms. I think that she is the cutest baby in the world. I wonder how I ever lived without her. I love her unconditionally.

In the end, I may not be a perfect Mom, but I'm Grace's perfect Mom. We're kind of like soulmates or kindred spirits. We're a great team. I will continue to make mistakes over the years and I will do things that I shouldn't. However, I can guarantee that I will never stop loving my baby girl. When all is said and done, that's the most important thing, right?

My Baby Girl is Growing Up!

My baby girl is growing up so fast. I remember how in the beginning she was perfectly happy to sleep in my arms most of the day. She would snuggle up with Mike or I, would lay with us for hours and would pretty much only wake up to eat.

Then she went through a stage where she wanted to be laying on her back all the time. She would kick her little legs and let out little squeals and babbles.

Eventually she started rolling over, moving around more and "talking" up a storm. I watch in amazement every day as she learns to do new things. I find it incredibly fascinating to see her personality develop. Grace has so much personality. She is starting to copy our actions and sounds and she screams to get people's attention when they're not looking at her (even if it's a random stranger in the grocery store)! She is a social butterfly without a doubt! She has the biggest, most beautiful smile I have ever seen. It lights up the room!

This past month has been full of milestones! On June 13, Grace got her first tooth and her second followed last week. Just when I thought she couldn't get any cuter... :)

She has started to give kisses (although she likes to tease her Daddy, leaning in for a kiss and then pushing his face away, ha ha). She flaps her arms wildly when I say "Yay, Grace" and bangs her hands on her high chair tray when she wants more food. She waves "Hi" and "Bye Bye" and particularly enjoys waving at "the baby in the mirror". She shakes her head "No" and clucks her tongue, laughing at the sound!

Waving at her reflection in the microwave!

Clucking her tongue!

Grace loves eating and is an excellent "finger food" eater. She loves feeding herself and I introduce her to as many new foods as I can. Her favourite food is still her cereal! :)

Having her first Arrowroot cracker!

She has started to move around the room A LOT! She has mastered the "army crawl", pulling herself along with her arms and pushing off with her feet. This gets her where she wants go quite fast! Our living room always looks like a tornado went through it, but that's okay. It's lived it. It's cozy. Yesterday Grace started sitting up from a lay down position. She does it from her belly, scooting back until she can sit up. As a result, her crib has been moved down (another sign that my "baby" is getting way too big)!

Sitting up in her crib! :)

Backed herself under the couch!

I know it is only a matter of months before she'll be crawling (the real way)...and then standing...and then walking. I love seeing her do these new things. She gets so proud of herself! It always makes me sad though to think of how quickly she is growing up. Before we know it, it'll be her first birthday.

Words can't explain how much I love this little girl. She makes me laugh every single day. I can't even remember what life was like before she came into it. I will continue to celebrate her achievements, even though they make me a little bit sad as well! I love you, Grace! xoxo

Summer

Things that I love about summer:

• The way my skin looks with a tan
• The smell of sunscreen
• Popsicles, ice cream, slushies...it all seems okay when it's summer!
• Sleeping in my undies :)
• Campires (and smores)!
• Camping
• Babies hanging out in nothing but a diaper!
• Exercising outside
• The beach
• Swimming pools
• Seeing lupins on the side of the road (this is a PEI thing)
• Hiding tired eyes behind sunglasses
• Fun beach hats on babies
• The drive-in
• The fact that summer clothes take up less room in the dresser!
• Did I mention ice cream???

Things that I don't love about summer:

• Bugs
• The smell of campire in my hair
• Wearing a bathing suit
• Humidity (and the effect it has on my hair)
• Getting into a hot car

What do you love/hate about summer?

In my eyes, there are more pros than cons here!

Summer is amazing! It rocks! Go summer! :)

Veggie Role Model?

Those of you that have been following my blog know that I have lost a lot of weight in the past few months. In January, I changed my eating habits considerably and it helped me to lose the rest of my baby weight, plus about 15 more pounds. The combination of intense exercise at UFIT bootcamp (http://www.ufit.ca/) and better food choices really made a difference for me. However, when I say "better food choices", it doesn't necessarily mean what you think it would mean. You see, I'm a horrible eater and always have been. I don't eat vegetables. I hate vegetables. The only vegetable I can handle is potato (which doesn't even seem like a vegetable to me). When I say that I started eating healthier, I mean that I cut back on the fast food, frozen pizzas, Kraft dinner and chips. I started to eat things like fruit, yogurt and high fibre cereal. Essentially, I lost weight because I went from being a horrible eater to an "okay" eater.

About a month ago, I reached my goal weight and started to eat more treats. I could slowly feel myself slipping back into old habits. I started going through drive-thrus again and I munched on empty calories during the day. My weight wasn't affected by these changes. I have been the exact same weight for almost a month now (my goal weight).

This past week I decided that I wanted to get back on track with the healthy eating. I'm doing it for a different reason this time. My whole life I have been a bit obsessed with my weight, watching the scale go up and down over the years. I would diet to lose weight, but then would end up putting it back on. Anytime I have decided to "eat better", it has been because I wanted to lose weight. Well, this time it's different. I don't care if I lose any more weight. I'm happy where I am. I just want to be healthier. I want to set a good example for Grace. How am I going to get her to eat vegetables if Mike and I don't touch them?!

I went grocery shopping on Thursday and stocked up on healthy food (lots of veggies, fruit, yogurt, chicken, turkey, etc). I was excited to try new things and to start eating veggies! Here's where it gets frustrating. I just can't do it. Tonight I made a pita pizza and decided to make a small salad to go with it. Spinach, feta cheese, strawberries, almonds...it looked delicious! I sat down to eat it, feeling proud of myself. Well, it was disgusting. I gagged more than once and just couldn't make myself eat it. I ended up throwing it out.

I was so mad at myself. I'm sure it's all in my head. Why can't I force myself to eat veggies??? I've tried them cooked, I've tried them raw, I've tried them drenched in butter and dressing. Nothing seems to work. I know that there are other ways to get my vegetable servings. When I was pregnant, I pureed veggies and put them in pasta sauces. I used to make smoothies with V8 juice. Here's the thing though...I don't want to hide the veggies, because that defeats the purpose of getting Grace to love them. She needs to see me eating them. I guess I'll have to try again and hope that I can learn to love them (although it doesn't look very promising). If you have any great ways of making veggies taste good, please share!

For now, I'll stick to the fruit and hope that Grace doesn't notice that I don't eat my veggies! :(

Brrrrrr!!!

One of my favourite things about PEI is the beaches. They are breathtaking. I could spend the whole summer at the beach. I love the feeling of the sand between my toes. I love the smell of sunscreen. I love the sound of waves crashing. In past summers, I would spend countless hours laying in the sand with the sun beating down on me. I would get excited as my skin turned a golden brown (I do wear sunscreen, but I tan very easily and sure do love a good summer tan).

As a teacher, I am very lucky to have the summers off (I think teachers need that break to re-group and get their sanity back, lol). I was especially excited about this summer, because it's Grace's first summer and I can't wait to get her to the beach.

Here's the thing...the weather sucks these days. There's no other way to put it. It just plain sucks. We have the odd nice, sunny day and then it is followed by a week of rain or freezing cold temperatures. This week has been especially cold. On Tuesday, I took Grace to Mike's ball game and the wind was so cold that we couldn't stay. I had 3 layers on and would have worn mitts and a hat if I had them. Poor Grace had so many layers on that she could hardly move and her little hands were still freezing.

Is this how I'm supposed to dress in June?

Last night, it was so cold in our house that I had to crank the heat. Grace wore her flannel sleeper to bed, I wore my flannel pajama pants and we broke out some extra blankets. This isn't supposed to be the case in June. We're supposed to be at the beach!!!

Excuse me for being bitter about the weather. I've just had enough of it. Time for some warmth and sunshine. Now, excuse me, but I have to go put some socks on. My feet are freezing. :)