Vintage toys and cupcakes too!!! (But not vintage cupcakes... because that's just gross.)

Several weeks ago I found an old friend in one of Oxford's many thrift shops.   It was dirt cheap, surprisingly clean, and fully functioning.  The only thing missing was the salt and pepper shakers (which were once yellow and orange if I remember correctly.)  As soon as I saw that old stove a flood of memories came rushing into my head.  Carefree playtimes that I had long-since forgotten (and had replaced with grown-up worries) were clear and vivid once again.  I knew immediately that Nora's childhood would be exponentially more fulfilling and enriching with this toy.  In fact, I decided, she needed this toy.  So I forked over the pound fifty and bought it.  (Projecting much?!)

(My siblings and I also had the sink and some dishes that went with it.  Like this...  )

Anyone else out there remember enjoying these classics??   

Anyhow, I brought the stove home excitedly and although it was very hard not to give it to her immediately, I hid it (and the cute little apron I found at the same shop) away as a birthday present.  What fun it has been these past few days to see Nora enjoying a toy that I too spent countless hours playing with as a child!

Mmmm, raisin soup!

Taste-testing her creation.

Hmm, it seems she may have 'tasted' every last drop!!

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 We didn't throw a party on Nora's birthday this year because most of her little friends are currently stateside celebrating Christmas and the new year with their families.  But party or not, a birthday is hardly a birthday without cake, and Nora wanted cupcakes!  So after she had opened up a few gifts we decided to put her in her apron and let her help make them!  

Carefully measuring and pouring.

Helping to stir.

Working side by side.

Nora loves to help Momma in the kitchen!

Then off to bed for a nap while I baked and frosted them.

Nora chose the blue frosting and rainbow sprinkles herself.  

(Only I ran out of rainbow sprinkles so I ended up using a variety of others too.)

When she woke up we let her open a few more gifts then ordered some pizza (which we haven't done since we lived in Canada!) and set up a picnic on the living room floor.  We all watched Toy Story together - a special treat for Nora who doesn't normally watch anything except videos of herself or friends/cousins on blogposts - and ate our pizza and cupcakes.  (Side note:  We have a Toy Story book that someone gave us and Nora loves Buzz Lightyear and Woody.  Occasionally she blurts out something like, "Bus Liteyeeh to wescue!" or "I come n peas!"  or "Ewe can't fwyy!")

   

                               

Can we eat them yet??

Yumm!

Happy 2nd Birthday sweet little Noodle!  

You brighten our days with your smiles, songs, prayers, giggles, and imagination.  You are so smart and capable and loving and funny (and spunky and ornery too!)  You keep us on our toes and we wouldn't have it any other way!

xoxo - Momma and Daddy

2010 Christmas Greetings! (A tad overdue...)

A Snowy Friend

We have a very affable child.

Potty Training Me

I've been perusing bits of literature on potty training for about 6 months now.  You see, it was a little over 6 months ago that I found a ridiculously cheap little plastic potty at a shop downtown, decided to take advantage of the bargain and brought it home for Nora.  We put the little potty on the bathroom floor by our toilet and it sat there... mostly collecting dust for several months

To be fair, when I bought it I had no intention of potty training Nora right away.  After all, she was only 16 months old.  Nora had been on the later end of many of the major milestones.  She routinely fell and smacked her head from a sitting position until around 10 months and didn't even army crawl until 10.5 months (let alone actual crawling).  She didn't really walk until about 13.5 months and even then it didn't really take off.  She still preferred cruising for the next 2-3 months or so.  On the other hand, she's always been a little ahead of the game when it comes to fine motor skills and she started talking quite early on (and hasn't stopped!)  All that to say, I wasn't getting my hopes up about potty training early.

But the more I read, the more signs I saw that she was ready.  So I thought we might make it a summer project.  June was insanely busy for me at work, a good deal of July was spent traveling in the states, August was manic as we tried to find a place to live for the next year and pack and clean our old flat and in September we moved to a new house, new neighborhood, etc and quickly set to work on home improvement projects.  In October Ben went back to school and we adjusted to our new fall routine.

They say not to try potty training during times of transition so obviously it did not happen as a summer project... but I could sense  Nora was ready to begin.  This fall she was even occasionally telling me when she went potty in her diaper but I hadn't the time to sit her on her little throne so I said things like, "It's okay Nora, you can go in your diaper."  (Note:  This is like the opposite of potty training!  This is diaper training!)

November hit and I was determined, THIS was the month I was going to try to start this potty training thing.  But then Nora got sick and I got cold feet... what if it didn't work?  What if she wasn't really ready?  How do I do this?  What if she hates sitting on the potty?   And, the weeks ticked by.

Finally I decided to give it a go - Thanksgiving day.  After all, what's the worst that could happen?  She pees her pants for a few days, makes no progress, and then we go back to diapers for a few more months, right?  So what?

We have this great little book from the library called "Girls Potty Time" and while it has been great for Nora, I think it's also written for parents!  There is this great page that says, "Sometimes accidents can happen but really that's okay.  All potty stars need practice,  no one's perfect straight away."  Nora wasn't a potty star yet... and neither was I!  But that was okay.  A little patience and practice was in order.  It was certainly a learn-as-you-go sort of endeavor for both of us.

But I did it!  With the help of a bag of mini marshmallows I taught my daughter how to use the potty!  It's been about 3.5 weeks and she hasn't had a real accident since 3 or 4 days after we started.  Which is great!  We're so proud of her!  And if you can't tell, I'm kinda proud of me and Ben too!

Side note:  Don't let anyone tell you that having your kid all potty trained is all bliss though.  In some ways it has made life more difficult.  For instance, I have to map out where all the public bathrooms in the city are before we leave the house (and we're still working on the "hold and hover" technique in case we ever need to use one).  I have to pack extra sets of clothes for her too (just in case - although so far we haven't ever needed them) which I haven't had to do for over a year!

Unexpected Potty Training Bonus!!!  There is not a lot that is cuter than seeing your precious little baby's behind in some cute little undies as she waddles around the house with her sleepy little bunny tucked under her arm.  Seriously adorable.

She Sings

These are just two examples of the many songs in Nora's repertoire these days. She loves to sing and we love to listen. Maybe you will too.



She's actually been singing her ABCs for well over a month now! She's just really hard to catch in the act!

Next up: 'Mary had a Little Lamb'. Not her finest rendition but like we said, she's hard to catch on film! Note her smokey jazz stylings (thanks to a nasty cough she had at the time.)



Nora's favorite song is definitely 'Frosty the Snowman' followed by 'Mary had a Little Lamb' (all 4 verses). The most recent additions are 'London Bridge' (all 4 verses…did you even know there were 4 verses? I bet not) and 'Jingle Bells' (thanks to Avery Simpson for that one).

My Commute

It's been cold here over the past couple of weeks.  A little snow, a lot of frost.

Tuesday I walked home from work mid-day.  Normally I would take my bike but the cold had caused my brakes to seize and I couldn't get that bike to budge.  It wasn't so bad though - I was sufficiently bundled.  The walk normally takes about 35 minutes but I stretched it to nearly an hour  as I stopped to snap some pictures and to generally delight in the frozen world around me.  

Not a terrible commute, hey?

Thanksgiving to Advent

Last night we hosted a Thanksgiving Potluck for a bunch of ex-pats like us.  It was so fun to have a house full of people and lots of little kids running around (or 'yunning' around - as Nora would say).  Everyone brought delicious food to share and most left the extras with us which means we'll be eating well all week!  I didn't get any pics of the whole group of us... I doubt we all would have fit into the frame anyhow!

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This morning was the first Sunday of Advent and, after such a big day yesterday, we slept in.  Ben made pancakes to a soundtrack of Christmas tunes and then I couldn't wait any longer.  It was time to set up the tree.  

Nora laid down to get a better look at the lights.

Then I told her she could actually touch the lights (until we put them on the tree.)

Here she is handing them to us.  What a helper!

Tada!

I also made an advent wreath (and Nora tried really hard to sit through our readings.)

Mostly she just wanted to hold the Bible.

I love this season!

I've got your nose!

You know that game you play with little children where you pretend to take their nose?  You pluck it right off their face and then stick the tip of your thumb between your your first 2 fingers and give it a little wiggle so they can see you've got it.  Ben occasionally plays that game with Nora and she likes it... for about 3 seconds.  But then she's ready to have her nose back on her face -- thank you very much!  So just as Ben is finishing up saying, "Uh-oh, I've got your nose!" she chimes in with the hopeful command, "Put it back."  Ben lovingly obliges and Nora grins a very satisfied and relieved grin.
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Today Nora and I were running some errands together in town.  It was absolutely freezing so we gladly took advantage of the heated corridors of the shopping center (mall) and warmed our fingers for a few minutes.  We walked past dozens of shop windows, each decked out for Christmas and trying to convince us that we should do all our shopping with them.  There were lights, trees, snowballs, Santa's and snowmen all just behind a bit of glass.  At the clothing shops we saw mannequin after mannequin decked out in sweaters, puffy vests, blue jeans, boots and colorful knit hats, scarves and mittens.

Nora took special note of the mannequins around town this morning.  At Boswells we were looking at hot water bottles to take to bed with us and keep us warm on cold winter nights.  These happened to be  located right next to the hosiery.  "Look dat!"  Nora exclaimed with a bit of concern.  When I turned to see what she was pointing at so high up on the wall, I saw three mannequin legs lined up next to each other displaying 3 different brightly patterned tights (and posed as if they would begin to do the can-can at any moment!)  I laughed.  How odd it must be for her to see body parts hanging from the wall.  What must she be thinking?!  After all, who did these legs belong to?  Were there three people wandering around without their right legs somewhere?  Would they ever get their legs back?  And how on earth could she keep people from taking her little leg??

Later in the morning she stopped to study the long line of mannequins (there must have been at least 12) in the display window at GAP.  Here she found children sporting warm winter jackets and mittens - very similar to the winter coat and mittens she was wearing at that exact moment.  Only these fashionably clothed children had no heads!!  Oh the look of concern on her face!  All she seemed to be able to utter was, "Dat." every few seconds as she hesitantly motioned toward the headless bodies.  Poor girl!  Was someone taking heads now too?!?

My tree

On the rear grounds of the college where I work there is a large lawn of lush grass and smack dab in the middle of it is a magnificent tree.  There are lots of other trees of varying sizes around as well but I am particularly taken with this tree's thick knobby trunk and splaying canopy.  This fall its leaves have been inordinately lovely and I have been thoroughly enjoying their splendor.   

When I walk past my tree (yes, let's call it my tree, shall we?) which stands so proudly in its featured position, I like to imagine how long it's been there and how many other people - who are now long gone from this place - have walked beneath its  strong crooked branches.  Were they in a hurry when they walked by?  Did this tree make them pause for a moment to wonder how such a tiny seed could become such a mighty thing?  Did they try to guess its age, how many times it had seen each season, the changes it endures as each year it grows not only taller and broader, but also drops its many thousand leaves in fall only to bud bright green replacements each spring?  Did they stop to eat their lunch and appreciate the cool shade it provided in summer?  Or did they pass by without even noticing the hundreds of shades of greens and then yellows and then oranges and browns it produced?  Did they curse when they tripped over its knobby roots which stretch in all directions?  What has this old tree seen?  And could I somehow learn its story if I listened closely enough?

I like trees.  Old trees remind me of old people.  Each has a thousand stories to tell.  Each is a treasure that is often overlooked or taken for granted.  And I'd like to think that each is full of wisdom and that if I listen closely enough, they might share a little with me...

Oh lovely leaves!

A couple of weeks ago Nora and I hopped on my bike and I took her to see this tree that I've claimed as my own.  The lawn below its branches had transformed into a thick carpet of orange and yellow leaves which had gently fallen over the course of a week or two. Oxford had been uncharacteristically dry that week making for soft rather than soggy leaves - perfect for piling up and jumping into.  So, this was our chance to delight in the wonder of fall before it was gone for another year.



Below are a few of my favorite shots from the day.  Enjoy!

Definitely her fake smile.

Whoa.

Knee deep.

You should have heard her giggle after being flopped into a great big pile of leaves! 

Let's do it again!

Nora found a tree a little more her size...

and did a little climbing.

She didn't want to get down for quite some time.

Then she climbed onto a bench to rest.

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Love.

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The noisy man with the leaf blower has come and gone and taken away almost every trace of our luscious fall carpet.  My tree's branches are bare and make a stunning pattern against the pale, gray sky.  We've had lots of cold, wind, and rain since this day of fall bliss.  

Winter is surely on its way.