Rave Bath

My kids get up early. Most days they are both up before, or close to 6 AM. Couple that with school from 8-3 (Tuesday through Thursday - Monday and Friday they have half days), and come 6 PM my kids are on a one way train to Crankville. It is hard enough to get them to sit and eat all their dinner when they are like this, let alone get them to eat and then go upstairs to take a bath.

There is the repeated chorus of "I don't want to take a bath!!" combined with writhing on the floor. Then the protest continues - "Why do we have to take a bath? We just took one yesterday? I don't stink! I am clean! Smell me!! I'm too tired to take a bath!" All too frequently there is some bribery on my part - an extra book, waiting up to see daddy, extra time to float in the tub, fancy bubbles, etc., and usually they take the bait and get in the bath. 

But I have a sure fire way to get them in the tub, no questions asked. 

Glow Sticks.

We had done this last year when we were living in the apartment a few times, but I totally forgot about it, until one of the girls found the glow sticks we had kicking around from Halloween. The past two nights the girls have actually asked to take a "glow stick" bath, each night running upstairs, racing to see who can get undressed first. Damn does that make the evening much more enjoyable!!

For just $19.99 you can buy a pack of 300 of the 8" sticks, on Amazon.com, which are the bracelet size ones, and that will last you a crazy long time. I let the girls have 8 glow sticks a piece each bath and it is plenty. 

 So if your kids protest the bath, get them excited with this simple and cheap idea. 

Just watch out for the crazy college flashbacks - wait, am I the only one that used to dance with glow sticks in college???

Get Crafty: Fun with Canvas

 After all our holiday traveling across the country to Cali, back east and to upstate NY, a low-key weekend was just what we needed! After a trip to the library to stock up on some new books, H said the only other thing she wanted to do was paint. So on Sunday we headed to Michaels where they are having a sale on canvases – buy a value 2-pack of canvases and get another 2-pack for free!

Only Teachers Like Snow Days

Okay, so I’m exaggerating with the title of this blog, but after today, I think it might be a little true. J

The past few weeks have been on the Northeast, a bit too much winter wonderland for me. I’ve never really enjoyed winter, at least not since I’ve been a grown up who lived in a world that did not stop when it snowed. Last year I traveled from my home in the suburbs through 3 feet of snow, into the city for a meeting scheduled by people who lived in the city and didn’t understand this was not a matter of having trouble finding a cab, it was a long and seriously drawn out, tedious process. Aside from the joy of trekking in the snow, there was the issue of child care. I was fortunate enough to have a husband who could stay home to care for our daughter, but there was no way our babysitter was getting to us that day…nor was there a chance she was getting to us today.

I’ve been reluctant to call out when there is snow as I know how many others are contending with the elements as well, so on today’s most “glorious” display of mother nature, my husband and I both stayed home to work and share the child care responsibilities since our sitter couldn’t make it out in the morning conditions. I don’t think it is a solution we will be considering again soon.

First of all, I seriously need a new list of tricks from mothers of 2-3 years olds. We colored, did memory cards, played with play dough, used chalk, read books, watched a show, ate breakfast and played store all before 10a. Mamas, PLEASE post some alternate ideas and suggestions that are easy go to for this age range that I can keep around. My daughter has an inappropriate amount of toys, but not much that she can or will do independently at this point. And while I adore the fact that she wants me in the middle of everything, as I was trying to email my boss, and take a conference call, it was not great.

Second, babies have a sick sense of radar for when you need them to sleep. We are blessed with a generally amazing baby who naps (I assume this is because she thinks sleeping in is 6a). However, NOT TODAY! Today, it took almost 2 hours to get her to lay down and fall asleep…and not until there were tons of tears (hers, almost mine), several visits to her room and many attempts to “rationalize” with a baby…who is too young to really be rationalized with. After she finally collapsed in my arms asleep (2 hours later), she awoke abruptly an hour and ten minutes later. Some days she has napped for four hours, most days three plus, today an hour.

So while I did enjoy working in my pajamas today, and treasured the extra time together, it was a far more stressful day than I expected and one that I wish I could have managed differently. Should I have called out of work completely? Should I have requested our sitter to be there in the afternoon, just in case? What did you do with this, and with other snow storms? And what ideas can you share about making the most indoors so that you don’t find yourself losing patience and enjoying the moment less?

Best (Free) Toy Ever

I frequently buy Marlo toys, largely in part because I get pretty bored playing with the same toys with her every day. I love to see that excitement when she sees something new, and finally figures out how it works. But then a day or two later she wants nothing to do with it. Another $20 (or more) down the drain. She has a few toys that she loves to play with all the time, like that thing where you push a button and something pops up, and then she can close it and repeat...but that only lasts about 5 minutes a day if we are lucky.

Thanks to Grandma we have stumbled across the greatest toy in the world (at least Marlo thinks so)...the box. I have always heard that kids like the packaging of toys/gifts much better than the toy/gift itself, but it has never been true for us until now.

I came home from running errands to find my mom doing laundry with Marlo on the floor, inside a box that was on its' side. I could hear the giggling and excited breathing the moment I walked in the door. I went upstairs to find her doing her excited seated dance (legs going real fast with arms flapping), as she spun around on her bum inside the box squealing. It was the cutest thing ever.

For the 4 days my mom was staying with us the box moved from room to room, and every time she was placed next to it the excitement set in. Last night as she was playing with my mom on the floor of the kitchen, I suggested that my mom (a very talented artist) decorate the box before she left...and so it became Marlo's Cottage, the greatest free toy ever.

Marlo spent about 45 minutes it in this morning, spinning around, looking out the windows, giggling, opening and closing the doors. It is seriously the greatest thing to happen to her in her 11 month old life. It is portable, it is free, it can easily be recreated if something were to happen to it, and she totally entertains herself with it. I put her Rody in the back window of it and it took fun to a whole different level this morning...

If you are looking for something fun and easy to do, get a box, get out some markers and an exacto knife and build your kid a box house. I promise, they will love it.

I can't wait until we get a new fridge to build Marlo's Mansion!