My Brother, the Naive May 14, 2008

Not to be confused with knave.

Beck wrote a lovely post about her daughters today that reminded me of some more stories of my manipulative tendencies toward my younger brother.

I really did have the perfect brother for manipulating.  He was tender-hearted, gullible and naive.  He thought I hung the moon until he was about 4.  Then there was me: nerves of steel (or at least gold, in which one can leave a mark with one’s teeth), heart of stone and mind chock full of skepticism.  I needed to take advantage of his innocence like a redneck needs an old dryer in their front yard.

We, like Beck’s children, had a “special tree” in our neighbor’s backyard.  It was a pine, not an old, gnarly, notched deciduous.  Norbert kept the branches trimmed up about 3 feet, but they were so long that they hung down to the ground, creating a tee-pee-like space underneath.  We would play on the soft brown needles underneath.  Our favorite game was “fairies.”  I would tell Brother stories about how the fairies arrived (by rocket, of course) and explain to him why he never saw them (even though he would often claim that he did, the pour soul).

I would run out to the tree, Brother trailing behind but running as fast as his chubby little legs would carry him, and say, “Oh, Brother, you just missed them!  There went their rocket!”  Sweet little boy would look up in the sky, shading his eyes, his lower lip trembling, hoping to catch a glimpse.  But it was hopeless.  Only I ever got to see the fairies.  As he got older and tired of my lies, he would attempt to manipulate me back (that or he was hallucinating).  He would run to the tree and say, “Oh, Heidi, you just missed them.  Too bad.”  And I would say, “Brother, you didn’t really see them.”  “Uh HUH,” he would whine.  “Yes I DID!”  And I would walk off smugly, knowing better, and he would feel ashamed.  I was loving like that.

Story #2

I was not the only one who liked to take advantage of Brother’s gullibility.  When visiting my aunt here in the Twin Cities, it often RAINED PENNIES.  I kid you not.  Miraculously enough, it only did this over her driveway.  It never rained pennies in my hometown.  We (my mom, aunt and myself) would stand in the driveway of her townhome complex and throw pennies in the air.  As they would land, Brother would shriek, “Another one, Mommy!  Look!”  And as he would stoop to pick it up, we would toss another penny some distance away.  As he got older and more suspicious, we would wait until planes were overhead and tell him that the planes were dropping them.  I remember this scheme working until he was probably 6 or 7 years old.  Sorry little chap, wasn’t he?  I only feel slightly better about all my manipulations knowing that my mom and aunt, adults, took their own delight in fooling him.

So there you have it.  More stories of me being a terrible older sister.  Let’s hope, for Anja’s sake, that I have gotten over my need to have fun in such a fashion. 

Come back tomorrow–I may post a photo or two of me and my tow-headed brother.  And tomorrow’s a special day.

Happy Mother’s Day! May 11, 2008

What I’ve learned about mothering over the past 8 1/2 months makes me SO much more thankful for my own mother and the sacrifices she made, the worrying she went through, and the joys she knew when we succeeded. Thanks, Mom!

A Good Mom May 9, 2008

A good mom probably abides by the “rules.” A good mom probably takes the AAP’s advice and doesn’t let her child watch a speck of television until they’re two. Well, up until this point, I’d pretty much kept Anja from watching anything. We would walk into a room at a relative’s house (or when her dad would be playing video games), and she would crane her neck trying to see. I would block it.

Last night, after coming home from running a quick errand, Husband informed me that she’d been crabby since I left. He left to meet with a friend, and she continued right on in her inconsolable crabbiness. Since I am such a GOOD mom, I did what every good mom would do. I searched for “Sesame Street” on YouTube. And we came up with some gems, I tell you. Gems from my childhood. I enjoyed them, but can’t say Anja was very thrilled. Apparently I was more easily amused as a child. Here are a few winners (let me know if you remember them). The last one is my personal favorite (it and its kind).

Oh, Snap! May 8, 2008

Anja is crawling a few little “steps” (do you call them that when you’re not on your feet?) at a time now. She sees something she wants, gets herself from a sitting position to all fours, and makes miniscule little crawling motions until she gets there. Then she grabs the object and sits herself back down, and I go wild, clapping and encouraging. Sometimes she ends up stuck under the coffee table or the piano and cries out for help. Like any good mom, I come to her rescue. Or sometimes she gets something she shouldn’t before I can stop her, like a plastic bag or one of our books. And I run to the rescue again.

I feel much like Anja in my photography endeavors these days. Seeing something I want to achieve, I take baby steps toward it. I practice the technique. I read about it in books and my camera manual. I ask advice of friends who photograph. I participate in photography forums. The progress is slow. I want to “arrive” quickly, when in practice, that rarely happens. But like Anja, I keep plugging away at it. And you folks have been my encouragers, my cheerleaders time and again. Thank you for that. Even mommies need someone clapping for them when they accomplish something.

Oh, and constructive criticism is always welcome, too. I relish it.

Baby Can’t Read Yet May 7, 2008

Yeah, I know that’s shocking. At 8 months, she still can’t read.

Anyway, I asked you all for book advice back in February, and you happily gave it. While I wanted to buy ALL the books you suggested, we don’t have that kind of a budget, so we narrowed it down to a few.

Husband LOVES Jan Brett (as do I), so we bought The Mitten. Two I remembered from my childhood were Harry the Dog and Blueberries for Sal. Since none of these were really appropriate for where she is right now, I grabbed the Baby Colors book by DK. Even with those literary classics in the mix, the BABY chose the baby book. She loves the colors and will sit patiently while I read every object on the page. As a result, we went back and bought a couple more DK books the other day–an alphabet one and a body parts one. We also picked up a copy of Rosen’s/Oxbury’s We’re Going On A Bear Hunt, which she also enjoys a great deal. Over time, we’ll be able to build our library even more (even though we have many bookshelves that area already full of grown-up books). We hope Anja will love to read as much as her parents do!

Sweetness Wins May 2, 2008

Edited to add: “Sweetness” is not a person who won the photo contest.  It’s still going on until Monday.  Just thought I’d clear that up.  Keep your captions coming!!!

I sold my big lens today. Sigh…Husband has convinced me to upgrade, which is fine, but it means I’ll be without a good zoom lens for a week or so. The lady I sold it to was really nice. I hope that means she’ll take good care of my lens, because man, I miss it already. I posted it last night around 11:00 p.m. on Craigslist and sold it this afternoon! Crazy how that works. I love it.

Anyway, since I won’t have any new photos for awhile, here’s some from a few weeks ago. Remember Anja’s friend that she was holding hands with in that photo awhile back? Her mommy said I could post pictures of her face, too! Yay! Her mommy happens to be a college friend of mine. Without further ado, here’s sweet little Anika at about 3 months of age:

Don’t you just love that expression?

She looks a lot like her mommy (which is a good thing, because her mommy is gorgeous!).

This Photo Needs a Caption May 1, 2008

At the urging of my bloggy friend Donna, I’ve decided to have a “name that photo” contest. But there’s a catch. While I do want a cute caption, even more, I want you, dear readers, to figure out what my baby girl is SAYING in this photo. You have until midnight on Monday, May 5, to leave a comment letting me know what you think she’s trying to say. The winner will receive….drumroll…a $15 Bath & Body Works gift card plus an undisclosed “other” prize. I soooo look forward to reading your entries!

Oh, and obviously, I’m no PW, so there’s no rush to get your entry in.  Take your time and be creative!

Bad Poetry Monday - 15 April 28, 2008

And some announcements at the end…

A Mother’s Treasures

She lifts the lid
To discover

Chubby hands exploring her own (upon examination) now-weathered thumb

Gentle sighs from tired lips

Kissable, soft cheeks hiding a delicate, ticklish neck

Shining eyes, so adoring

Giggles and wiggles meaning “Come play with me!”

She closes the lid and locks away
These treasures in her heart

————-

A couple of announcements…

Randi at I Have to Say will be hosting her Recipe Box Swap this week, and this month’s theme is…COOKIES AND BARS! Be still, my beating heart. I will be posting some sort of tasty treat for you (and her other readers), and if you want to play along, head over there to get some linkage for this cool graphic:

Second, I will be hosting a contest later this week. A photo-captioning contest, to be exact. So get yourself hyped up and your creative juices flowing. A not-as-fantabulous-as-PW’s-but-still-cool prize will be awarded, too.

Q & A, Part III April 27, 2008

Happy Sabbath, everyone! Some more questions answered below…

Lulu (who should get a blog, right everyone?) asked, “In the spirit of Earth Day, what are your favorite ways to be green in your everyday life?”

I actually didn’t celebrate Earth Day in any special way, but I’ve been an avid reducer/reuser/recycler since I was little.

“What are your tips for a fit and healthy pregnancy? Mr. Right and I have what we call a ‘five year plan’ for wedding, house buying, and first baby, but I say it’s never too early to start getting pointers!”

It’s never too early to start building for a healthy pregnancy. The healthier you are when you get pregnant, the healthier you’ll be when you are pregnant. As a general rule, I tried to eat at least 5-6 servings of fruits and veggies a day in addition to taking my Juice Plus+. I worked out at the gym 3 nights a week and walked or ran outside 20-30 minutes on the off days. Even in the winter, Husband and I would suit up and go out for a walk. I continued this patter when I was pregnant, and worked out (lifting weights and everything) up until the day before I went into labor. You might get detractors (“Don’t you think you’re hurting the baby?”), but as long as you keep your heart rate at a safe level and don’t exercise to the point of exhaustion, you’re probably doing your body a favor. Another helpful thing to me was joining an online forum. The one I used was called “Babyfit” and it was helpful to have other experienced and first-time mothers to answer my questions.

“What’s your typical Starbucks order?”

You know, I’m not much of a coffee drinker (water, now that’s my bag), but when I do order something, it’s usually whatever the current seasonal beverage is.

Jamie asked, “What is your favorite book?”

When I was a child, it was probably a toss-up between Matilda by Roald Dahl or The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin. Now? I’ve been reading nothing but non-fiction for so long…it’s hard to say. I read the Bible most regularly, so I’ll go with that.

“How did you and your husband meet?”

This is a rather odd and long story. To make it short, he was coming to the same college as me, and my aunt said, “There’s this boy from my church coming to your college. I want him to get in with ‘good people’ so you should invite him to Campus Crusade.” I did just that at the beginning of the year, and dusted off my hands, duty done. I didn’t speak to him again until Christmas break, when we were assigned to the same discussion group at CC’s Christmas Conference. Our group really hit it off and hung out a lot back at school, and we became good friends. Then during May (finals week) he asked me out.

“What do you like most/least about being a mom?”

Most: I can be having the worst day ever, and just a smile from my baby girl brightens it incredibly. She really is a delight.

Least: I don’t deal well with lack of sleep, and her schedule and mine…they don’t always run parallel tracks.

“How many pairs of shoes do you own?”

This is going to sound terrible, but keep in mind that I have shoes that date back to my high school years and probably 10 pair are $1.99 flip-flops from Wal-Mart…I have 40 pairs.

Jenni asked, “Bein’ as how you’re from Minnesota, do you have any Scandinavian blood coursing through your veins? You look blond and blue-eyed, but that could be German as well…”

You’re correct. I’m mostly Swedish, but I also have bits and pieces of these:

English
Irish
Scottish
Norwegian
French-Canadian-Indian
German
Ukrainian

How’s that for a mutt?

Thanks everyone, this was fun, and not as intimidating as I thought. Once again, if you asked a question, consider yourself “tagged” to do the same thing on your own blog, if you so choose.

No FS Today, Just more Q & A April 25, 2008

Can I just start by saying that I’m so excited to meet you new peoples who have been stopping by? Makes my day!

Now for round 2.

Happy Mommy asked, “Ok, last week you asked us to pray about daycare or babysitter for Anja, are you going to work?”

I’ve actually been working 2 10-hour days since November and doing my photography on the side. I’d love to be home, but unfortunately, the feasibility is nil, unless someone volunteers to give us an extra couple thousand bucks a month. J I enjoy my job, so it’s not as terrible as it all seems…I just hate missing out on bits of Anja’s life. An update: had an interview with a provider very near our home this morning and it went well. I’m going next week to get an in-person look at her daycare.

“How long did you know your husband before you got married?”

I met him briefly at the beginning of my Jr. year of college, so I “knew” him for about 2 years 9 months.

Both Happy Mommy and Miz Booshay asked:

“How many children would you like to have?”

Back in the day, I always said 3 or 4. Husband, after having the first, said he’s fine with two (apparently pregnancy and childbirth was even harder on him than on me!). Now, I don’t really have a set or planned number in mind.

“And how old are you?”

For shame! Isn’t that supposed to be some rule—never ask a woman her age? Well, since I don’t abide by all the rules, I’m 28.

Johanna asked, “What’s your favorite thing to do when you have a moment to yourself?”

Umm…do mommies have that? Just kidding. Currently, when Anja is taking naps, I blog, read blogs, or read about photography. So I guess reading and writing are right up there!

Miz Booshay asked, “What would Anja’s name have been if she was a boy?”

We only had it narrowed down to two names when we went to the hospital, but our favorite was Beckett (Beck for short). Since then, my cousin named her little boy Beckett, so we’ll have to come up with a new one for next time around.